


A Saiyan and the Crystal Gems

by orphan_account



Category: Dragon Ball, Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-25
Updated: 2016-06-24
Packaged: 2018-07-18 02:05:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7295140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After being thrown into an alternate dimension, Vegeta meets the Crystal Gems. Can the Saiyan prince help the Crystal Gems defeat the combined might of Home World's Military? Or are they and the rest of Earth doomed? Please read and review!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Dimensional tear

**Author's Note:**

> I'm bringing this story over from fanfiction so the whole thing will be up to day.

Chapter one: Dimensional tear

"Aaaaaahhhhhh!" Vegeta yelled out as he trained. At 1,200 times Earth's gravity, even his super saiyan 2 strength was being pushed beyond it's limits.

"Vegeta!" Bulma's voice came over the intercom. "You're going to die if you don't knock this off! And if you don't you're going to wish you had when I get my hands on you!" She threatened.

"Shut up and leave me be!" He called back as his battered body collapsed to the floor. "It'll take more than this to get the better of me." Vegeta pulled himself up too his hands and knees.

"Will you AT LEAST tell me why you're doing this!?" Bulma could feel her self getting red as her frustration with her husband grew.

"Because," Vegeta looked away from Bulma. "I failed to protect you from that freak of nature, Buu." He stood, seemingly with ease. "I will NOT lose you again!" He let out another thunderous yell as he powered up even further.

The training capsule shook violently. "What good am I if I can't even protect my wife?!" Vegeta said; his voice carried an anger Bulma had never before heard.

The sound of tearing brought Vegeta from his rage induced trance; he'd managed to cause some kind of tear in the dimension. He was drug towards the singularity as if it were a small black hole. "What the hell is that thing?" Vegeta strained to pull away from the pitch black meter wide singularity. "I've wasted too much energy." Vegeta admitted solemnly as he slowly slid backwards.

Finally losing his fight with the pull of the singularity, Vegeta was sucked into the seemingly endless rip in space and time.

"Vegeta!" Bulma's voice trailed off as he was drug further and further into the darkness and the tear closed behind him.

Before he even knew what was happpening he was lying flat on his back. Vegeta opened his eyes, the sun was hot on his face and blinding. He could feel sand underneath him and waves lapping against the shore. "Where am I?" He questioned. Standing and stumbling slightly but catching himself before he could fall. Turning and taking in his surroundings he was met by a dozen, very confused humans.

"Sir? Are you alright?" A mans voice grabbed Vegeta's attention. A police officer eyed him suspiciously. Without a word Vegeta began to walk away. "Hold it, I need to have a word with you, sir!" The police officer sounded irritated with him.

He grabbed Vegeta by the arm in an attempt to stop. "Release me, fool!" Vegeta snapped tossing the man like a rag-doll across the sand.

"Hold it right there." A very large, reddish-violet skinned woman landed in front of Vegeta. "Identify yourself." She ordered, giant gauntlets appearing on her hands.

Vegeta didn't respond as he stared at her 3 companions and sized each one of them up. A short purple skinned girl who brandished a whip, a taller and slimmer one with pale white skin and a spear, and finally, a human child?

"Answer her!" The short purple one yelled cracking her whip in an effort to intimidate him.

"I'm Vegeta. Now, I suggest you three stand aside." He warned them.

"No way, dude!" Amethyst took a step towards him. "We're not going anywhere!" Amethyst lunged at Vegeta in a haste.

"Amethyst! No!" Garnet yelled out, but it was too late; she had engaged a foe they knew nothing about.

"You are a fool." Vegeta frowned in irritation, meeting Amethyst with a knee to the gut and an elbow to the back of her head. She slammed down to the sandy beach, writhing in pain.

The beach was silent as Garnet, pearl and Steven looked on in horror.

"Ame-" Steven tried to run to her aid but was stopped when Pearl wrapped her arms around his waste and picked him up.

"Stand back, Steven. Let me handle this." Garnet stepped forward calmly, readying her Gauntlets. Garnet and Vegeta stood across from each other; both of them ready to pounce at any moment.

"We don't have to do this." Vegeta spoke first, his voice unusually calm.

"The time for diplomacy has come and gone." Garnet said, narrowing her sights on Vegeta and sliding gracefully into her stance.

"Hmph. So be it." Vegeta sighed, raising his hands and readying himself for a fight.

Garnet leaped forward, slamming her fist into the left side of his face. Sending him sliding across the beach. Standing and wiping the blood from his lip, Vegeta let out a small chuckle. "This should finish you!" Garnet yelled as she dove in with another powerful punch.

With a swift dodge, Vegeta flattened out on the sand and slammed his foot into Garnet's stomach. Appearing seemingly instantly behind Garnet, Vegeta locked his hands together and slammed them down on the back of her head. Letting out an audible yelp as she hit the beach.

Vegeta panted as he landed down back on the beach. _"I'm running out of energy; I need to finish this fight."_ Vegeta concluded silently.

"Garnet!" Steven struggled against Pearl's grip.

"No, Steven!" Pearl held onto Steven, despite wanting to jump in an assist her comrade. "You can't get involved in this fight." Pearl gripped Steven's shirt tightly; silently praying for Garnet to get back up.

"What are you?" Garnet struggled too her feet, purple blood dripping from a cut on her cheek and her split lip. "You are no gem, but you are CERTAINLY not human." Finally finding the strength to stand upright.

With speed none of the Gems had ever seen, Vegeta latched onto the back Garnet's head and drug her face downwards and into knee after knee. Shock waves erupted from each blow with a loud Pow, shaking the Earth. Garnet's gauntlets disappeared as her body went limp and she collapsed to her hands and knees. Coughing as blood dripped off her nose and chin.

"Garnet!" Steven called out in horror as he accidentally elbowed Pearl in the nose and finally slipped her grip.

Vegeta let out an audible sigh as he extended his right arm and flattened his hand. "Stop!" Steven jumped in between the two of them, his extended arms visibly trembling. "Please, don't hurt her anymore!" Tears began to drip down his cheeks as Vegeta lowered his hand slowly. "Can't we just, talk instead?" Steven shrugged slightly as he lowered his arms.

Seemingly on queue the ocean erupted, revealing the monstrous fusion, Malachite. Making landfall, the behemoth shook the very Earth with each step. "What is that creature?" Vegeta had a look of disgust and curiosity on his face.

"Malachite.." Pearl drew her spear.

"How long did you all really the water wench could keep me trapped at the bottom of the Ocean for?" Jasper's voice came out as she glared down at the Crystal gems. Jerking violently for a minute as Lapis momentarily gained control.

"Get away, Steven... Please!" Lapis' voice came out as the gem contorted; the battle for control raged on. The near by ocean turned into a violent whirlpool.

Malachite threw an enormous hand towards Steven and Garnet. Vegeta scooped up Steven by his waist and grabbed Garnet by her arm before leaping from it's path. Another powerful strike landed directly on them; Vegeta did his best to shield Steven as they were sent flying. _"Damn. If I wasn't so exhausted I'd have blown that disgusting thing away by now."_ Vegeta thought as he stood, though his body protested.

"Stop this!" Lapis took control of the fusion again.

"Shut up, brat!" Jasper forced her down again. Swinging another attack, at Steven!

**"NO!"**

_**Bang** _

"STEVEN?!" Lapis sat up quickly, regretting that decision immediately but she was to frantic to care about her injuries. Her eyes scanned the beach as she looked for the boy. Finally finding him she jumped to her feet and limped as fast as her battered body would let her. Collapsing next to him, she could feel tears streaming down her face as Steven didn't respond. "Steven...?" Her voice trailed off.

"Lapis?" Steven's tired voice finally responded. "I'm dizzy." Without a word Lapis pulled him into a her chest in a tight hug, laughing through her tears of joy.

"The brats more powerful than she looks." The large gem said under her breath as she finally stood completely upright. "You're a traitor!" Jasper shouted in anger taking a step towards the two gems. Lapis' arms curled defensively around Steven. "You think your treason will go unpunished?" Jasper continued to walk towards them, gripping her left arm as she went. "Home world may have forgotten about this pathetic little rock but I am going to crush all of you!" She barked out threat after threat.

"That's enough." Vegeta landed in between them. "There's been enough violence for one day." Vegeta tried to hide his exhaustion as he felt himself power down.

Jasper knew this being must be incredibly powerful to take a direct hit from Malachite and survive. "Hmph. Don't think this is over, _Crystal Gems_!" Jasper turned on her heel and took off away from the beach.  
Finally exhaling Vegeta turned and walked over towards Garnet who sat on her hands and knees. Garnet looked up at the man, his gloved hand was extended towards her. Taking it he pulled her up to her feet. "Are you alright?" Garnet nodded, she was suspicious of him

"If she finds Peridot, they'll contact home world." Pearl said aloud as she helped Amethyst to her feet, she was still wobbly and still in extreme pain. "You know that." Garnet looked down at Vegeta, she tried to hide her pain, and for a split second she contemplated cold clocking his as he looked over at Lapis and Steven.

"We'll be ready, for whatever comes next." Garnet answered, though there was a feeling of fear and uncertainty between them.

The walk back to the temple was quite, Vegeta and Garnet lagged behind, their aching bodies would only allow them. Pearl carried Lapis and Amethyst on her back; despite Lapis' protests. Finally making it into the everyone made exaggerated sighs of relief; Pearl laid the sleeping Steven into his bed and Lapis on the dingy sofa next to Vegeta.

"Can we trust him?" Pearl chewed her nails as she watched Vegeta sleep from the kitchen. "You've seen what he's capable of, do you think it's safe to have him near Steven?" Garnet dropped her shattered glasses on the counter and materialized another pair.

"Only time will tell, Pearl."


	2. Settling In

Chapter Two: Settling In

_Lapis sat on her hands and knees, grimacing as pain pulsated from her back. She could feel that her gem was cracked, and the rebel gem forces were moving in on her and she had no chance of escape. The homeworld army had been beaten, with all there technology and all their troops they'd been bested by the rebels. Turning her head, she saw Garnet standing over her, as stoic ever. "Just make it fast, please." Lapis said aloud, accepting her fate, she was to tired to fight her off._

_"It will be." She assured her, as her gauntlets appeared on both hands. Raising a fist, ready to shatter Lapis' gem at any moment; who closed her eyes tight and braced._

_"Stop!" Lapis opened her eyes and looked back at where the voice had come from; Rose Quartz!_

Lapis woke from her dream just before dawn, a sudden rush of panic surged through her as she tried to remember where she was. The ocean gem winced at the pains that covered the entirety of her body. Lapis looked over herself; her blue sundress had been removed and she had bandages covering a good portion of her body. Quietly Lapis stood from the couch and limped towards the door, the only light that guided her way was moon light that spilled in through the windows.

"You shouldn't be moving, yet."

Lapis spun around, startled by the voice in the dark, straining her eyes she was able to make out Pearl's tall, and very slim figure. "I'm fine." Lapis lied, it was obvious that she was in tremendous pain. Pearl began to walk towards the smaller gem, who in turn took a few steps back.

"Relax, Lapis, I just need to finish bandaging your arm." Pearl tried to calm the girl.

"Wait, you undressed me?" Lapis realized, her cheeks flushing a dark shade of blue.

"I had too in order to properly bandage your body." There was an awkward silence between them for what seemed like forever. Pearl sighed and dropped the gauze she was holding on the coffee table. "Listen, Lapis, I will not touch you again without your consent."

* * *

"General Blue Diamond?" A small gem with dark red skin and white hair, which was pulled into a tight bun, called into a large office like room nervously.

"What have interrupted my very limited spare time for this time, Coral?" Blue Diamond turned away from an enormous screen on the wall. Her Formal military uniform was dark blue and her blue hair was medium length and stood straight up in tall spikes.

"C-captain Jasper and Destroyer 1-9-2 have yet to return from their expedition to-" She glanced at her tablet. "Earth, and they have been out of comms for 7 weeks." Coral tried to hide her trembling from the tall blue gem who obviously terrified her.

Blue Diamond nodded, pulling a screen up on her desk. "How long over due are they?" She asked.

"3 days." Coral stated.

"Jasper took Peridot and that stupid little Lazuli with her, correct?" Blue Diamond rubbed the bridge of her nose in irritation.

"Correct."

"I grow tired of the games we've played with that worthless little planet." She tapped on a screen that came up on her desk. "I think it is time I pay them a personal visit." An evil smirk spread across her lips.

* * *

"Since it's clear you're not human, what are you?" Garnet finally asked, Pearl stood at her hip, anxiously awaiting his response.

Vegeta sat up and chuckled slightly. " I am a saiyan," He began but was interrupted.

"Saiyan? From planet Plant?" Pearl perked up a, a confused look on her face.

"You've heard of them?" Garnet asked.

Pearl nodded, sipping her tea. "I was a part of the recon squad sent in to scout it for possible colonization. But the inhabitants, the saiyans," She gestured to Vegeta. "And the the Tuffles were powerful, and the Diamond authority determined it'd be cost defective to wipe out the indigenous life." Pearl finished as she continued to eye Vegeta. "But I've never met a saiyan like you before." Vegeta chuckled and ran a hand through his dark hair.

"I guess Frieza wasn't the only one with sights on galactic rule."

* * *

The next 3 days were quiet, Vegeta, Lapis, and Garnet were all nursing their wounds and Steven had been confined to his bed by Garnet. A sudden shock wave rocked the house to it's core, windows rattled and pictures fell from the walls.

"What was that?" Pearl sprang into action, immediately checking on Steven. Another shock wave and an unholy roar sounded from the beach. Drawing her spear, Pearl ran out into the rain. A giant gem monster, the beast stood nearly 50 feet in height and resembled a crab, its orange shell gleamed with water. Pearl knew she couldn't beat this monster, not alone, but she was running out of time and options.

"You can't beat that thing on your own, Pearl!" Steven pleaded with his surrogate mother. Who clenched her spear and gritted her teeth.

"Steven, get back in side!" She ordered as Vegeta put a calming hand on the boys shoulder. Pearl leaped off the porch and stabbed at it's shell. With a swift strike the crab countered knocking her to the ground, her now broken spear still in her hand. Tossing the snapped spear aside and pulling another one from her gem, she tried to think of a plan, there had to be some way for her to beat this monster.

Slamming it's claw into the sand, Pearl easily dodged the attack, the monster had strength but it was slow. Vegeta scanned the gem monster for a weakness, some chink its seemingly impenetrable armor. _"That's it!"_ Vegeta thought as he found a weakness. "Pearl! Aim for its joints, it's your only chance!" Pearl noted and waited for an opportunity to strike.

Throwing her spear as hard as she could it pierced the soft fleshy joint of it's claw. Letting out an irritated hiss before lunging forward towards Pearl, who froze. "I'm no match for it." She said aloud as the beast closed the distance between them. Pearl closed her eyes, waiting for the end to come. But before it could reach her it was engulfed by a giant hand composed of water.

Roaring out in agony as the hand lifted it from the ground and its grip tightened. Lapis' hand was extended, as if it were controlling the hand. "Tell me, what do you plan on doing with this gem if I crush it?" Lapis held the struggling gem monster off the ground. "Will you lock it away? Like an animal? Like you did to me?" Half of Lapis wanted to release the corrupted gem to tear Pearl apart; and the other half screamed at her to protect her and the other Crystal Gems, and most importantly Steven.

"The best we can do for it right now is sealing it up." Pearl half pleaded with ocean gem.

"5,000 years," Lapis stated simply. "You all left me trapped in a mirror, for 5,000 years." She could feel tears welling up in her eyes, thinking about the countless days and hours she'd spent trapped in that cursed mirror. "Promise me you won't let it happen to anyone else."

"You have my word, Lapis." Pearl responded quickly. With that Lapis closed her fist, the water crushing the gem monster, its shrill screams echoed across beach city before it finally retreated into its gem. Pearl sighed aloud in relief as Steven wrapped his arms around her waist. Garnet bubbled the light green gem quickly. "Lapis.." Pearl started to catch her breath. "I'm sorry, if I'd known you were trapped-"

"The past is the past," Lapis cut her off. "But I am NO ONES prisoner, not anymore."


	3. Home World Blues

Chapter three: Home world blues

Jasper ran as fast as she could down a lonely stretch of highway leading away from beach city, the setting sun at her back. _"She only over powered me because I didn't expect her to betray me for Rose."_ Jasper tried to rationalize it in her head. _"I just underestimated her."_

"Jasper!" A familiar voice came from behind her. Peridot! Jasper could feel something deep inside herself, something she could only describe as joy. "I've been looking for you. Where have you been?" Peridot seemed to be scolding her.

"I was tied up." She couldn't bring herself to admit that she'd been over powered by a Lapis Lazuli, even it was the strongest one she'd ever encountered. Peridot stared at the larger gem for a while, a look of irritation on her face; she knew Jasper was lying.

"I pieced together enough of my equipment to contact Homeworld, but I've been waiting until I located you." Jasper could hear the irritation in Peridot's voice; she knew that Jasper was lying to her but they didn't have time to argue. "Whenever you're ready to tell me what you were actually doing for the last 7 weeks feel free, and where'd Lapis go?" Jasper's silence said everything. Peridot rolled her eyes and let out an audible sigh as they walked off into the desert.

Jasper trailed behind her comrade as they walked, she could hear her mumbling to herself as they went. Finally coming to a clearing where Peridot had an assortment of scraps from the crash.

"You obviously went to the crash site, so why come all the way out here to set up your little base camp, why not just stay in the area?" Jasper asked, gesturing to all the scraps on the ground.

"And risk running into those gems?" Peridot scoffed. "Like I'm any match for those brutes all by myself. Now let me do this, you're frustrating me." Jasper chuckled to herself at the last comment. Peridot had always been a hot head, even by Japser's standards. "Stop laughing, I'm hailing Homeworld." A silence fell between them as a small green screen materialized in front of them.

"General Blue Diamond." Jasper and Peridot said at the same time, bowing their heads in respect.

"Let's skip the formalities. What happened?" Blue Diamond cut straight to the point, her scowl made them both feel small and helpless.

"We underestimated our foe. I was backed into a corner by a fusion and was forced to fuse with the Lapis we brought with us." At that Peridot's eyes shot up to the larger gem, glaring daggers at her as she continued. "She trapped me and drug us both to the bottom of the sea."

"Okay," Blue Diamond swiped her through the air in an exaggerated motion. "My top Captain and top technician, armed with one of the deadliest warships in our armada; couldn't over power 3 left over rebel gems, a child, and an obsolete Lapis Lazuli."

"But-" Jasper began to protest.

"I've heard quiet enough. You have FAILED me, Captain. You know the consequences of your mistake, I will be there in 17 days." Blue Diamond's voice was calm and cold, her words made Japser's body slouch her head dropping in shame. The green screen vanished and Peridot jumped to her feet, her lips curled back as she glared at Japser.

"You FUSED with her?!"

* * *

Steven, Pearl, and Lapis, walked to Beach City from the Temple. Steven had finally managed to get Lapis to venture into town with him, but only after nearly a week of incessant begging by Steven, and Pearl had insisted on accompanying them. There was still an uncomfortable feeling between Pearl and Lapis, they wanted to trust each other, but they just couldn't.

Their constant eyeing of each other and their refusal to ever have their back to one another went unnoticed by Steven. "Pearl!" Steven shouted, from her hip as he spotted a small sign that read " _Free concert on the Beach! 8pm till sunrise!"_

"Can we go!?" He continued to shout in excitement.

"Steven..." Pearl was unsure about taking him to a concert. She knew that humans had a tendency to act out in large groups, especially with alcohol in the mix.

"Please?" Steven begged, clasping his hands together and sticking out his lower lip. Pearl sighed aloud, one day she'd have to find a way to say no to that face, but not today.

"Okay, Steven. But you are to stay by my side for the entirety of the show."

"Yay!" Steven jumped in the air. "Can Lapis come too?"

Pearl looked to the ocean gem, who shrugged her shoulders. "Why not."

 _"I can't believe I'm doing this."_ Pearl gritted her teeth as she stood in the middle of a crowd of humans. The blaring music and screaming of the singer on the make shift stage, which looked like it might crumble under the feet of the band at any moment, made her head throb. Steven danced and bobbed his head to the music.

"Humans are strange creatures." She laughed to herself, a goofy smile on her face. She'd never seen anything like this, any normal gem would probably stick their nose up and remove themselves from the situation, but Lapis found it so intriguing. Lapis turned to Pearl, noticing she was preoccupied watching Steven, she took the opportunity to slip away into the crowd of sweaty humans.

The night dragged on, band after band played, each more intoxicated than the last. Pearl had lost Lapis hours ago but couldn't bring herself to seek out the ocean could feel Steven beginning to sway back and forth slightly as he fought to stay awake. Pearl sighed in relief. "Time to go home." Scooping Steven off his feet she walked away from the crowd.

"Where's Lapis?" Steven asked groggily.

"She's already at home." She lied, but Steven was to tired to pick up on something like that. _"I guess Ill have to find her after I take him home."_ Pearl thought irritated. Why should she have to baby sit her? Why does Steven have to be so damn attached to that nuisance? Pearl fumed all the way to the temple and back to the beach. _"I'm gonna tear that girl a new one."_ She thought. _"I should be home watching over my baby, but instead I'm stuck combing the beach for a gem I don't even know."_ Pearl couldn't help but scoff at the absurdity of letting any enemy gem, who they knew absolutely nothing about, stay in their home. And further more, allow her near Steven.

Pearl pushed her way through the crowd of people, knocking a few intoxicated people off their feet. She didn't care, the usually calm gem was growing more and more irritated by the minute.

"Lapis Lazuli!" Pearl screamed at the blue gem who sat alone on the waters edge, away from the concert. No response. "Oh that does it.." Pearl stamped across the sand. "Lapis, we are leaving NOW!" Before Pearl could reach her two very deformed water hands blocked her path, both threatening to grab her at any moment.

Standing Lapis wobbled slightly as she turned to face Pearl. "And what makes you think you're the boss of me?" Lapis' legs were shaky and her face was flushed a dark shade of blue. She was drunk.

"Lapis..." Pearl tried to calm the very intoxicated gem. "It's time for us to go home, you're drunk." Pearl was actually amazed. _"I didn't even know gems could get drunk."_ But she didn't have to to muse over that.

"And if I refuse?" Lapis responded after taking a sip from the red cup in her hand.

 _"Great, she's a mean drunk."_ Pearl couldn't force Lapis to leave, not even while she could barely stand. "Then we'll have to stand out here all night, and Steven will be disappointed that we're not home when he wakes up." The hands receded back into the ocean.

"That isn't my home." She finished her drink and tossed the cup aside. "I don't have a home." Pearl took a few cautious steps forward.

Looking out over the seemingly never ending ocean. "I remember your voice." She finally spoke.

"What?"

"You spoke to me, while I was trapped in the mirror." Lapis turned on her heel and fell back down to the beach. Lapis smiled as she thought of it. _"Show me Homeworld."_ She mimicked the question. _"Show me Rose again."_ Pearl tensed slightly at the last part. Pearl had asked her countless times to show her Rose Quartz. The nature of their relationship must be so clear to her.

"You must have really loved her." Pearl sat down next to Lapis. "I wonder if anyone felt like that about me when I never returned from this miserable little rock." There was a solemn silence between the pair.

Pearl didn't know what to say. What could she say? Pearl had voluntarily left her home behind, and though she missed it she'd built a new one here on Earth. Lapis' had been trapped on a world that wasn't her home, and when she returned home it wasn't her home anymore.

"Lapis..." Pearl searched for the the words to say. "I know this probably doesn't mean anything, but you could make Earth your home." Pearl put a gentle hand on Lapis' shoulder. "Steven would love that." She laughed thinking about it. Lapis stayed silent, and her hair covered her eyes, which made Pearl nervous so she continued. "And Earth has it's perks, there's no absurd laws, at least not any that affect gems and-"

"There's Steven." Lapis interrupted her in a soft voice. Pearl let out a small chuckle, scooting herself closer to Lapis. They stayed silent for a while, Pearl gently running her hand through Lapis' hair, doing her best to comfort the younger gem.

 _"Im gonna bore you guys with one last song and then Ill piss off. Alright?"_ The man on the near by stage said into the mic as he strummed a few cords as the intoxicated crowd laughed.

"I could certainly fall in love with humanity." She laughed aloud, listening tapping her hands on her thigh to the rhythm of the of the acoustic guitar, and the man's abrasive voice.

Pearl raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. "They're far from perfect." Pearl responds glancing over at the concert that was now dying out. "They're rash, panicky, and-"

"Their imperfections are what makes them perfect, Pearl."

"You sound like Rose.." Pearl couldn't help but notice the similarities in how they spoke of humanity.

"Is that a bad thing?" Lapis turned and looked at the pale gem by her side.

Pearl sighed aloud. "I haven't decided." Pearl had been on this planet for several millennia, and she'd watch humanity evolve and spread across the globe but she couldn't find what Rose and Lapis saw in humanity.

Lapis laughed slightly. "Let's go home."


	4. Vegeta's training

Chapter Four: Vegeta's training

"What do you mean training, Vegeta?" Pearl questioned, as Vegeta walked out the door, Steven and Amethyst in tow. Lapis who had wanted to join was too hungover from the night before could be heard moaning in discomfort throughout the beach house.

Vegeta sighed and looked towards the gem. "Steven needs to learn how to defend himself, you won't always be there to save him. And Amethyst's needs to learn to control her emotions and her energy." He finished as he continued to walk out of the beach house.

"We will always be there to Protect him though!" Pearl snapped back, offended by his insinuation that they would fail in protecting Steven.

"You can believe whatever you like, Pearl, but the fact remains that in the heat of battle you can never rely on anyone or anything. Nothing is certain." Vegeta finished as he stepped out of the house, leaving Pearl fuming.

"Don't worry Pearl, I want to learn how to fight. It'll be fun!" He to disappeared from the beach house doorway.

Pearl threw her arms in the air. "I can't believe this.."

Vegeta breathed in the smell of the ocean, focusing on the two in front of him. "First things first, can either of you fly?" Vegeta asked, already knowing the answer to his question. The two shook their heads. "Didn't think so." Vegeta scratched his head, thinking of how to go about this.

"Energy," Vegeta began. "It is the basis of every technique I use. From flying to energy blasts." He smirked slightly, powering up to his super saiyan form, the sand around his feet exploded, showering the beach.

Steven looked on in awe of the super saiyan, the transformation was unlike anything he'd ever seen. "Show off." Amethyst muttered under her breath, folding her arms in front of her.

"Although neither of you will be able to achieve this transformation, you both still have high energy levels, utilizing your energy is key to unlocking your potential." Vegeta smiled slightly, looking at the two being in front of him. "Now feel the energy within yourself, harness it, and then force it out!"

Steven began to expand his energy immediately, Vegeta chuckled at how fast the boy had picked up on it. "That's it! Now, release it!" Steven turned bright red as sweat poured down his face, dripping off his chin as he struggled to harness the raw energy within himself. Letting out an audible yell that could be heard from the beach house Steven finally gained control of his energy.

 _"Woah!"_ Steven thought, feeling the field of energy that now surrounded his very being. "This is so cool!" He exclaimed aloud, his excitement caused Vegeta to chuckle slightly. Amethyst looked on, she couldn't believe Steven could pick something like that up so quickly. She couldn't still couldn't grasp the concept of an invisible energy that flowed through her body.

"You need to open your mind, Amethyst." Vegeta stated simply, his eyes still on Steven. "That's the only way for to unlock your true potential."

"Hmph. This is stupid. Im going home." Amethyst turned on her heel and began to head to the beach house but her path was blocked by Vegeta who appeared in front of her.

Amethyst took a defensive step back. "So instead of working to learn something new, you quit? Give up, just like that!?" Amethyst let an audible growl as she raised her fists, as if to threaten Vegeta.

"Get out of my way!"

Vegeta threw his left hand out and with a burst of energy, he sent Amethyst skidding backwards. "I will NOT let you abandon your training so easily. The others may allow to get away with your lackluster performance in battle; but I won't." Vegeta narrowed his sights on Amethyst. "Let's go!"

"Fine! if you wanna fight so badly!" Amethyst leaped towards Vegeta, throwing a punch with all the strength she could muster. Catching it easily, Vegeta diverted the energy and pancaked her on the beach. Yanking away Amethyst drew her whip, swinging it wildly at Vegeta, no rhyme or reason, but each attack missed, but was never countered by Vegeta.

Finally launching forward Vegeta lowered his shoulder and slamming into Amethyst like a freight train, knocking her across the beach. Sitting up and wiping the blood from her chin, she could feel the anger growing in her, and Vegeta could sense it.

Amethyst jumped to her feet at lunged towards Vegeta, throwing a barrage of punches, until Vegeta caught both her fists and held her there. "There are opponents that you cannot beat with a head on attack, so what do you do?" He questioned as Amethyst struggled to free herself from his grasp.

"Then they'll kill me!" She replied, giving up.

"Not-" Vegeta cocked his head back. "Good enough!" He head butt the purple gem, knocking her backwards. "If all your friends, your family's lives are on the line, what are you going to do to win?" He readying himself for another exchange.

Amethyst let out an exhausted sigh. "I don't know!" She felt something deep inside her slipping. "There's no way I could ever beat you, you're too strong!" Amethyst wrapped her whip around Vegeta's wrist, a move of desperation. Yanking the whip and Amethyst into a knee.

"Some battles are hopeless; some battles cannot be won with brute strength, or technique, sometimes there is one inevitable outcome," Vegeta shoved Amethyst away and tossed her whip across the beach. "You will die but you fight anyway." Amethyst stepped away from Vegeta, grasping her stomach.

"Why?" She asked, wincing at the pains that covered her body. "Is the fight can't be won then why not give up?"

"For him," Vegeta pointed a gloved hand towards Steven. "For them," He pointed up to the beach house, and Garnet who stood on the patio watching them. "For Earth, because sometimes failure is not an option. If you wish to spend your life in mediocrity so be it, but you will not cost your allies their lives in doing so." Amethyst dropped to her knees, covering her eyes with her hair.

Garnet, who'd been watching the pairs very one sided sparring match, the usually stoic gem couldn't help but crack a small smile. None of them had ever been able to break through to Amethyst, not in a way that had any lasting effect.

* * *

"My head hurts." Lapis grimaced, shying away from the sunlight that came in through the curtains. Pearl had left to get something named Greg, Lapis didn't care who or what it was. She just wanted Pearl to be back already.

"Well do you know how much she drank?" An unfamiliar voice grabbed Lapis' attention, recoiling and drawing the sheets over her head as the light from the open door reached her eyes.

Lapis hissed in irritation as the door remained open for longer than she would have liked. "Close the door!"

Greg laughed aloud upon hearing her. "Yep. That's a hangover for ya." He walked over and sat on the edge of the pullout mattress. "Any idea how much you drank?" Greg asked the ocean gem, who felt her stomach jerk at the thought of alcohol.

She buried her face into the pillow, shaking her head. "A lot." She replied, preferring not to think of absurd amount of alcohol she had put into her body.

Pearl and Greg glanced at each other. "Well, I gotta tell ya kiddo this is the first time I've dealt with a hungover gem before." Greg scratched the back of his head, thinking of what to do. "You gems don't really eat or drink anything, so I'm sure home much help my hang over remedies would be." He admitted, shrugging his shoulders as he looked at Pearl who had a deflated look on her face.

Pearl let out an audible sigh. "How long do they usually last?" Pearl couldn't help but pray that it'd only last a few hours; the thought of being stuck with of being stuck with irritable ocean gem made her shutter. Lapis wasn't hard to set off, even on her best days.

Greg took a good look at Lapis, her eyes had dark circles and he could tell by the heavy exhales through her nose that her stomach was bothering her. He pondered the question for a minute. "It'll be gone by tomorrow morning, if she's lucky." Greg watched Pearl for a minute, he could tell that wasn't the answer Pearl and Lapis wanted to hear. "Drink lots of water, and try to get some sleep, not much else you can do."

Greg left the two gems after he realized he was no help to them. Pearl reclined on the creaky mattress next to the gem she would have called her enemy less than 3 weeks ago. "Oh my head..." Lapis whined, her voice muffled by the pillow she had buried her face into her pillow. Pearl sighed and began running her hand through Lapis' hair.

"I know, sweetheart." Pearl couldn't believe what she'd just said. _"Sweetheart? Why did I just call her that?"_ Pearl thought silently, though Lapis didn't seem to notice that little slip up. "Just try to get some sleep. Okay?" Pearl continued to mindlessly ran her hand through Lapis' hair. The front door swung open, Steven, Amethyst, and Vegeta entered the beach house, a welcome distraction. Amethyst hid her face, almost ashamed and walked hastily to her room. "What's her problem?" Pearl asked, not truly caring for the answer, Amethyst was still young and it didn't take much to set her off.

"He gave her what she needed." Garnet said, eyeing Steven from the door to her room. Something was different about him, but Garnet couldn't put a finger on it.

* * *

Jasper ran as fast as her legs could carry her towards Beach city, and the Crystal Gems. _"I have to find a way to beat those traitors, before Blue Diamond gets here. I can't fail. I WON'T!"_ The red gem hadn't tasted defeat in many centuries, she wouldn't accept it here on this planet. She could hear Peridot yelling at her, though her mind tuned it out, it was nothing more than noise to her. Feeling something pushing against her chest, Jasper is finally dragged from her concentration.

Peridot glares up at the larger gem, she detests manual labor. "You can't win. We need to wait for Blue Diamond." At that Jasper shoved Peridot aside, and continued her march. Peridot let out an irritated growl as she grabbed Jasper by her wrist. "Will you stop acting like a mindless foot soldier for two seconds and LISTEN to me?" She managed to stop her comrade. "We HAVE to wait for reinforcements. We can't beat them on our own."

Jasper again pushed Peridot out of her way. "Do you know what Blue Diamond does to gems that fail their mission?" Jasper asked, frustrated by her subordinates constant interference. Peridot nodded, sighing knowing where Jasper was going with this. "Then you know that Blue Diamond may very well have our gems crushed when we return to Home World. IF she doesn't do it herself." Jasper paused, grimacing at the thought of being crushed at the hands of her own General. And though Jasper herself had a great physical strength, unmatched by the vast majority of Gems; she knew she was no match for blue diamond. "I'd rather my gem be shattered in battle than at the hands of Blue Diamond back on Home World. I worked too hard for too long to have my legacy destroyed by these _Crystal Gems_."

Peridot took a step back from her comrade. "You're so blind." She stated simply, realizing there was no reasoning with Jasper. "I may not be old enough to know what Home World was like before the Diamond Authority took control; but you are. And yet you would die for them, when they would have us killed for failing a mission that they forgot about for nearly 5,000 years." Perdiot sighed. "I will take no part in this foolish battle you insist waging."


	5. Battle on the beach

Chapter Five: Battle on the beach. Jasper vs the Crystal Gems

Lapis and Pearl sat together on the beach, watching Steven Connie and Garnet who, reluctantly, agreed to play in the ocean with the two. Vegeta and Amethyst were having a little sparring match near by, though Amethyst seemed to be scraping herself off the beach more often than not. She tapped her foot in rhythm to the "I could get used to this." Lapis remarked, twirling her fingers and unconsciously making a water spout in the distance.

"You talk a lot." Pearl responded to the younger gem in a slightly playful voice.

Lapis chuckled and shrugged her shoulders. "I did spend 5,000 years trapped in a mirror with no one to talk; only to have you occasionally pester me to show you Homeworld or Rose Quartz." She paused as she turned to face Pearl. "Only to be trapped with an irrational, egotistical, and down right vile Jasper." Pearl felt her cheeks get hot. She wish'd she'd never said anything. "So I _apologize_ if I talk a little too often." Lapis finished chewing out Pearl. It was half heart'd and they both knew it.

Amethyst and Vegeta went back and forth, Vegeta let the purple gem advance on him, retreating and blocking all of her attacks with a grin on his face. Amethyst began to flurry, swinging wildly at Vegeta. Noticing this Vegeta caught Amethyst's wrist and with a swift open handed shot to her gut he knocked the wind out of her.

"Don't get over zealous." Vegeta stood in front of her, his hand outstretched. "You leave yourself open when you flurry like that." Amethyst nodded, taking his hand as he pulled her to her feet.

"Look out!" Steven's panicked voice came. Turning just in time as a boulder the size of a double-decker bus crushed him and Amethyst. Their group looked on in horror as the two disappeared beneath the rock.

Landing gracefully a top the boulder, a smirk spread across her lips. "Jasper.." Garnet growled as her gauntlets appeared on her arms. Pearl drew her spear and stood shoulder to shoulder with Garnet, gritting her teeth.

"Lapis, protect Steven and Connie." Lapis immediately expanded her wings and moved in front of the children. Jasper chuckled upon seeing this.

"Oh Lapis. Would you truly give your life for Rose Quartz and that tiny human?" Jasper seemed genuinely curios.

Lapis glared at the red gem. "No," Pearl glanced back at Lapis. "But I wouldn't hesitate to die for STEVEN." She smirked slightly. "It doesn't matter anyway. You're going to die here."

Jasper through her head back in laughter before gathering herself. "Not likely." Jasper and garnet lunged towards each other. Stale mate. They both let out irritated growls as they both tried to over power the other. "I won't be beaten." Jasper began forcing Garnet backwards. Jasper's crash-helmet appeared just before she headbutt Garnet away from her and into the ocean. Pearl leaped towards Jasper, spear first. Jasper caught the spear with ease, she glanced at Pearl with a smirk, before tossing Pearl like a rag doll. Pearl grimaced she sat up, holding her left shoulder. "You are pathetically fragile. Even for a Pearl." Jasper held onto Pearl's spear. "Now die." She whipped the spear through the air and at Pearl!

"NO!" Lapis rushed to Pearl. **Thunk.**

"Lapis!?" Pearl's panicked voice grabbed her attention. She felt exhausted all of a sudden, and there was a sharp pain in her stomach. She glanced down, Pearl's spear protruded through her stomach, the blade soaked in her dark blue blood. Lapis began to collapse but Pearl caught her before she hit the ground. Pearl felt blood running down her arms and onto her legs and tunic.

"Hmph. Maybe Lapis isn't as spineless as I first thought." Jasper remarked, earning a glare from Pearl as she gently laid Lapis on the beach and drew another Spear. Pearl pointed her spear towards her opponent, taking a deep breath. "Fighting me all on your own I see? I guess I can just sit back and enjoy myself as I POUND you into dust." Jasper cracked her knuckles as Pearl took a step towards her. Pearl struck first; diving forward and narrowly missing Jasper's throat. Moving swiftly out of Jasper's range she once again had her spear pointed towards Jasper. "I'm rather impressed by your technique, Pearl." Jasper stated with a smile. "If you hadn't chosen Rose over Home World you would have made damn good Lieutenant for the Pearl's" Pearl rolled her eyes. Jasper did this with ever opponent she felt had earned her respect.

Again they engaged. Pearl clipped Jasper's shoulder but ate a knee in process, sending her flying. Catching herself as gracefully as possible she wiped away the blood that was now pouring from her nose as she tried to game plan for their next exchange. _"She's too strong for me to fight on my own."_ Pearl knew she was no match for Jasper who was known throughout the gem world for her brute strength. _"But if I lose, she'll kill Steven."_ Pearl thought silently as the two gems circled each other. She fired several energy blasts from the tip of her spear. All of the attacks missed but it was enough to catch the larger gem off guard. "Gotcha!" Pearl exclaimed as she rushed forward.

The spear pierced through Jasper's right shoulder. The smile slowly disappeared from her face as she caught the glare she was getting from Jasper. "Did you really think," Jasper began as pulled the spear from her shoulder. "That you could stop me with that dull blade?" She slammed the smaller gem to the ground and wrapped her hand around her throat. Raising a fist far above her head, she was ready to shatter Pearl's gem into a million pieces. Pearl clawed at Jasper's hand as she tried to free herself from the hand that was holding her down. "A fitting end, for a traitor." Jasper said coldly. She swung her hand down with incredible force. Pearl closed her eyes and waited for the impact that would surly end her life.

A quivering water hand latched onto Jasper's arm, pulling her off of Pearl. "I'm not," Lapis gasped she staggered to her feet. "Done with you yet." Whipping her hand threw the air she drug Jasper across the ground. Pearl sat up, in aw of the fact that Lapis could stand, let alone fight with Jasper. "Pearl?" Lapis' called back as loud as she could.

"Yes?"

Three more water hands sprang forth from the ocean as Jasper tore free from the first. "Take Steven and the other, and run." Lapis knew the consequences of taking Jasper on alone.

"But-" Pearl began to Protest.

"Pearl!" Lapis hissed. "Let me do this for you, for Steven, for the Earth." She sighed aloud. "Just let me do this.." Pearl knew there was nothing she could say that would change Lapis' mind. She was going to protect Steven, even if it meant she'd die in the process. Pearl scooped Garnet off the ground and began to leave the beach.

"We can't just leave her!" Connie and Steven protested together. Steven could feel tears filling his eyes.

"Steven.." Pearl spoke softly. "Lapis wants to do this for you." She tried to explain to the children in front of her. Steven let out an irritated growl as he pulled his own hair in frustration.

"Why is everyone so ready to lay down their lives for me!?" He spun on his heel so he was facing Jasper who was fending off Lapis' water hands. "I'm not a baby!" He raised his right hand and flattened out his palm. _"Big Bang attack!"_ A ball golden energy landed directly on Jasper's chest. Jasper yelped aloud as the explosion engulfed her.  
The beach was silent and everyone's eyes were locked on Steven, who was panting. "Uh oh." Steven's little smile disappeared. "I hope I didn't break her gem." Pearl and Lapis rolled their eyes.

"Not quiet." Jasper sprang from the cloud of dust. Barreling towards Steven, crash helmet at the ready!


	6. Exhaustion

Chapter six: Exhaustion

Jasper slammed her helmet into Steven's chest, he let out a scream of agony. "Steven!" Pearl called to her child as she ran towards him.

"Hmph." Jasper exhaled with a smile on her face. "Thought breaking the famous Rose Quartz would be harder than that." She remarked as she returned her attention to Lapis, who had collapsed to her knees. Steven tried to stand, but three broken ribs and a fractured collar bone kept flat on his back. "You had a chance," Jasper spoke first, wiping the small amount of orange blood from her cheek. Steven's attack had managed to damage Jasper far more than any of the other gems were able to. "All you had to do was work for us, for one lousy mission, and you could have gone back Home. But no, you chose to die on this miserable little rock. Why?" Jasper was perplexed by why so many gems had traded HomeWorld for Earth.

Lapis shook her head. "You don't get it, I don't want to go home." That sounded foreign to everyone, especially to Lapis.

"So, you're choosing the traitors over Homeworld?" Jasper questioned.

"No," Again Lapis shook her head. "I'm not betraying Homeworld, I'm betraying what the Diamond Authority has turned Homeworld into since they took control." Lapis tried to hide her pain from Jasper. "And _we're_ going to die together, on this _miserable_ little rock." Lapis ripped the spear from her stomach and lunged for Jasper.  
Jasper caught the spear a mere inch from her gem. She knee'd the smaller gem in the stomach and yanked the spear from her weakened grip. Lapis screamed in agony as she doubled over, her arms trembling as they crossed over her wound. "Damn..." Lapis swore as she tried to stand. Her battered body finally gave out, collapsing to her stomach, she fought against her instinct to retreat into her gem.

Jasper kicked Lapis again, smiling when she didn't retreat into her gem. "Good, I can take my time." She smirked as she put her foot on Lapis' back and pressed down. The ocean gem bit down on her lower lip, she tried not to scream but eventually one worked it's way out. The near by boulder shifted slightly, Jasper released the ocean gem and turned her attention to the massive rock. "There's no way they survived." Jasper assured herself. "It's not possible." But again, the boulder shifted. The rock lifted from it's spot as Vegeta raised it above his head with one hand, before tossing it out to sea.

"No true warrior blind sides their only true competition." He looked around the beach at his comrades who were beaten and broken. Jasper took a few steps back from her adversary, still in utter disbelief. Vegeta chuckled slightly. "You didn't honestly think you could kill me with that measly rock?" Vegeta's smile disappeared. "A fatal mistake.." Before Jasper could react he was on her, his fist planted in her gut, followed by a short elbow.

Jasper recoiled, knocked far back onto her heels she felt... Afraid. Her body trembled as her eyes locked with this man that she dwarfed. She wiped the blood that was now pouring out of her nose. "What are you Earthling?"

"Your doom."

Jasper knew by the look in his eye that meant what he said. Her crash helmet appeared just before she shot forward to try and take the fight to Vegeta, who easily caught her wrists and held her at bay. Jasper headbutt Vegeta with all the strength she could muster. A thin line of blood made its way down Vegeta's forehead, but he had a smirk spread across his lips. "My turn." Vegeta powered up as Jasper tried desperately to free herself from his grasp. The super saiyan returned her headbutt.

The force of the impact knocked Jasper far across the beach. Jasper was seeing stars as she tried to stand, but only stumbled around for a moment before falling onto her rear. She ripped her crash helmet off, the front of it had been bent upwards and the visor was shattered. "Useless!" She tossed the helmet into the water as she finally regained her bearings. Vegeta stood a few steps away from her, his arms crossed over his chest and his foot tapping impatiently. "Stop that!" Jasper hissed. Annoyed by his blatant disrespect. "I'll crush you; you insolent little worm!" She could feel her face getting hot, her anger growing. Vegeta's chuckle was the last straw, Jasper rushed him.  
Again Vegeta took control of the engagement, battering the gem with combinations of punches and kicks that Jasper had no hope of defending.

"Your bravery in this face of certain death is admirable." Vegeta couldn't help but respect his foe as she again stood, though doing so sent shock waves of pain throughout her body. Jasper began to laugh, a slight chuckle at first, but turning quickly into a thunderous laugh. Vegeta stared at the orange gem in confusion.

"You think killing me is going to save you and these traitors?" Jasper laughed again. "Blue Diamond, and The HomeWorld armada, will be here by weeks end. You and everyone else on this miserable little rock are doomed." Lapis and Pearl listened to Jasper before Lapis passed out and retreated into her gem.

"We'll see about that." Vegeta chuckled slightly, raising his arm and flattening out his palm, a ball of brilliant blue energy began to flicker. Jasper knew that Vegeta's attack would kill her, so she knelt down and closed her eyes.

"WAIT!" Vegeta turned to see a green skinned gem barreling towards them. Skidding to a halt putting herself between the Saiyan and her comrade. "Please for the love of HomeWorld just listen to me." Peridot begged the saiyan who looked irritated.

"Pearl, who is this nuisance?" Vegeta questioned, energy orb disbanding as he looked back at Pearl.

"Her name is Peridot, she's the one who brought Jasper to Earth." Pearl glared at Peridot, holding Steven in her arms and cradling Lapis' gem close to her chest. Vegeta's attention turned back to the gem in front of him.

"If idiots want to survive HomeWorld's invasion then you'll listen to me!" Peridot screamed in frustration. No one ever listened to her, ever.

Vegeta growled in irritation. "You have ten seconds to spit it out, or I'm blasting you and that weakling behind from existence." Peridot took a deep breath.

"Blue Diamond is bringing the entire might of HomeWorld's military. You may have fought them off before but there's no stopping what they're coming with this time. Not without me." Peridot explained to Vegeta and the other gems, who were still conscious.

"You're going to betray HomeWorld?" Jasper coughed out, glaring at Peridot. "After all they've done for us?"

Peridot scoffed. "All they've done for us? What has HomeWorld _EVER_ done for us? Besides sending us to conquer countless planets whom had no hope of fending us off. Under the guise of patriotism, only to shatter the gems who failed in their missions." Jasper was taken back by Peridot, but had no response. Knowing full well she was speaking the truth. The Diamond Authority viewed other life forms, including gems, as lesser beings. Beating those who dare to defy their will into submission, or wiping them from existence.

Jasper exhaled slowly. "So what's the alternative? Hm? Join forces with these traitors? Fight off HomeWorld for as long as we can?" Jasper sat down, her body aching. "It's suicide."

"Tell me, what is it you're afraid of? Is it the hopelessness of knowing that you're hopelessly out matched by the beings sending you into battle after battle? Is it the idea that everything and everyone you care about will be destroyed for your defiance?" Jasper stared up at the man who had just beaten her faster than she thought was possible. His tone soft, but his eyes showed anger, hatred, hurt. "Or is it that they've engraved it in your head that no what you do or say, that they will always be in control of you?" Looking away to hide her tears from him. He nodded slightly, knowing he was right. "Would you rather live your life under their rule? Or do you want to fight?"

Jasper stayed silent for a while, thinking, finally she turned towards Vegeta. "I'm not sure if we can beat the Diamond Authority," She stood and wiped her eyes. "But it's the only option I have." Jasper let out a deep sigh, the idea of leaving HomeWorld behind and having everything she'd worked for erased wasn't exactly appealing. But neither was being destroyed by an Earthling.

Vegeta turned away from Peridot and Jasper and back to his comrades who were collecting themselves. Garnet was back to her feet and she picked up Amethyst's gem, which a had a small crack in it. "You'll make a useful ally," Vegeta remarked as he let his super saiyan form slip away. "And as long as you are my ally I will defend you until death. But if you betray us, I will destroy." Peridot snickered slightly. The similarities between the two of them were uncanny. They were both strong, brave, and clever, but their pride often blinded them.

Pearl stepped in front of Vegeta as he tried to walk back to the beach house. "You can't be serious, Vegeta." No response. "With all do respect, you don't know Jasper like I do. She's been the right hand of the Diamond Authority for the last 7,000 years. What makes you think that'll change?" Pearl folded her arms.

"I was where she is now, once." Pearl raised an eye brow confused. "When I arrived on Earth I was just a pawn, sent to conquer and destroy by beings who would have slain me without a moments hesitation for disobeying them, or even just failing them." Vegeta paused, thinking back on it. "Now is the time for compassion, Pearl." His comrade growled under her breath, clutching Lapis' gem in her hand.

"After everything she just did to us?" Pearl tried not to yell as she clutched the tear shaped gem in her hands even tighter. "After she nearly killed Amethyst? She is our enemy!" Finally Pearl gave into her anger and screamed at Vegeta.

"Pearl." Garnet's some what shaky voice chimed in. "If we hope to have any chance against HomeWorld, we're going to need all the help we can get." Pearl closed her eyes as tight as she could as Garnet spoke. "I don't like this either, but." Garnet paused, removing the shattered glasses from her bloodied face. "If we're going to save the world that Rose fell in love with, and if we're going to save the ones we care about." Again she paused as pearl turned away from her. "I-I just need you to trust me."

"You don't really need my trust..." Pearl turned her head slightly, so she could look back at her Garnet. "You just need my compliance. That's all you've ever needed from me." And without another word Pearl marched hastily down the beach, eager to get away from Garnet and the others. Garnet tried to go after her friend but was stopped by Vegeta who simply blocked her path with his arm.  
Vegeta understood her frustration, remembering vividly Krillin's frustration with Kakarot's decision to spare him the day he arrived on Earth. It was, as Kakorot felt, the right thing to do. He would do the same for Jasper.


	7. The World is Ending

Chapter Seven: The World is ending

Pearl laid on the edge of a rocky cliff over looking a small cove, the lights from Beach City behind her and Lapis' gem on her chest. The moonlight reflecting off the water was calming her, slowly. Pearl knew she'd have to go back, eventually, but for now she was content with star gazing while she waited for Lapis to regenerate.  
The tear shaped gem suddenly lifted from her chest as it glowed bright blue, as Lapis' form took shape. Her skirt was shorter, her top now a solid blue, no longer bearing the symbol of the Diamond Authority.  
Her head spun until she finally her eyes finally locked onto Pearl, whose face was bruised and still stained with blood. Lapis dropped to her knees next to Pearl as she examined the others injuries, cupping her face in her hands. Pearl could feel herself blushing from the sudden contact and Lapis being less than 4 inches away. "Hi, Lapis." She got out with a laugh. But the ocean gem didn't respond as she inspected her injuries. Lapis roughly turned Pearl's head to look at the dark bruise that circled her eye and stretched down her cheek. "Ow!" Pearl hissed grabbing Lapis' hands and pulling them away from her very sore face. "It still hurts." Pearl said with an exaggerated exhale, still a firm grip on the others hands.

"Sorry.." Lapis apologized in whisper. Pearl nodded and released her hands and returned to star gazing. Collecting her thoughts Lapis finally took in her surroundings. "Where are we?" She questioned. "Why aren't we at home?" It took Lapis a moment to realize what she'd said, but she brushed off as slip up.

Pearl let out an audible sigh, she'd been trying not to think of it. "Vegeta.." Again she paused, frustrated. "He let Jasper live." She finally spat out. Lapis was dumbfounded. He let her live?

"Why?"

"Vegeta said now is the time for compassion, and that she'll make a good ally." The idea of fighting shoulder to shoulder with _Captain_ Jasper was less than appealing. Even the ancient memories of having to take orders from her made Pearl cringe. _"At least now she isn't my commanding officer."_ Pearl thought silently.

It took Lapis nearly a minute to process what she'd just heard. "Do you trust his judgement? Vegeta doesn't know her after all, not like we do."

Pearl laughed slightly. "Too an extent." Pearl continued to think about it. "He isn't entirely wrong after all, Jasper is very strong, and she knows HomeWorld's strategies, and all their weaponry better than anyone else." She paused and glanced over to Lapis. "And maybe after thousands of years of experiencing the cruelty of HomeWorld showing her compassion and love will give her the chance to better herself. But,"

Lapis raised a brow. "But..?"

"But she could very well turn on us during the battle. That could turn the tide of battle in HomeWorld's favor."

* * *

Blue sat on her throne in one of 30 warships drawing closer to Earth. A tablet in her hands as she watched the broadcasts that were coming from Earth. Smiling slightly as she watched the armies of Earth. "This planet may put up a fight against us after all, Coral." Blue Diamond spoke to her assistant, swiping to a video of an atomic explosion.

"Do you think they have a chance of fending us off?" Coral asked.

Blue Diamond shook her head, swiping to yet another video, this time of an A-10 leveling a city block. "Of course not, but give them 2, maybe 300 years, assuming they haven't wiped themselves out, and the human race would be rather troublesome." She noted the human races self destructive nature. "Are we within range for me to warp to the surface?" With a click the energy tablet dematerialized.

"Yes, we're in range of the warp pads remaining on the planets surface." The voice came from a Pearl, that was at the controls of the hand shaped warship.

"Excellent. Fleet, hold current position until my return from target planet." Blue Diamond said into a small blue screen on her wrist as she stood from her seat and walked to the small warp pad inside of the control room, a feature unique to the ships all the members of the Diamond Authority used. She was followed closely by Coral and another Pearl, who walked with a spear. "In all the years you've been my assistant I don't believe I've ever had the pleasure of seeing you in combat fatigues. You look rather dashing, Coral." Blue Diamond noted as Coral slipped the Navy blue beret over her pure white hair. Coral was glad she couldn't see her blush because her cheeks were burning. "

"Th-th-thank y-you, General." She stumbled over her words as they warped to Earth.

Blue Diamond inhaled deeply, taking in her surroundings, the smell of the sea and the sound of the waves on the near by coast. The memory of defeat. "Are there any gems in the area, Coral?" She asked her assistant who nodded as tapped a few buttons on her tablet.

"Yes, there's two straight a head. A Pearl and either a Lazuli or a Sodalite. We're to far away for my sensors to differentiate." Blue Diamond stepped off the pad and walked forward, a smirk on her face and purpose in each step.

"I think we know who it is." Blue Diamond walked quickly towards the position of the gems.  
They walked in silence, until they came to a ridge over looking the ocean. Blue Diamond stopped to admire the view

"If I didn't know you better, General, I'd say you seem to love Earth." The Pearl half laughed, readjusting her heavy blue armor.

"I can appreciate a thing of beauty. Besides," Blue Diamond finally turned away from the cliff to look at her subordinate. "Have you ever seen anything like that?" She gestured to the vast ocean that stretched as far as they could see.

 _"Ahem."_ Coral got the attention of the two. "As interesting a conversation this is, the two gems I'm tracking, are approximately 55 meters from us. Down on the next ridge if I'm not mistaken." The gem tried to hide her frustration behind a warm smile, though Blue Diamond saw straight through it. With a nod, Blue Diamond leaped from the ridge, followed by Pearl and Coral.

Without a word Blue Diamond leaped from her spot and down the cliff, landing gracefully behind Pearl and Lapis. Locking eyes with Pearl who scrambled too her feet in a haste, drawing her spear. "Is that anyway to greet an old friend?" Blue Diamond spoke first, folding her arms and wearing an obviously fake look of hurt.

"Stop being coy!" Pearl snapped, gritting her teeth and clutching her spear as tight as possible, trying to stop her hands from trembling. "How did you get here? We would have known if you'd landed a ship on planet and we destroyed all the HomeWorld warp pads."

"You didn't destroy every warp pad on the planet's surface, and local warp pads can be used from as far away as the fourth planet from your solar systems star." She let her hand rest lazily on the hilt of the sword she wore on her hip. "And," She began, taking a few steps towards them. Lapis grabbed a hold of Pearl's arm. "I wanted to ground my coming in reality for you. I want you to feel that sinking fear that the world you fought so hard to save will be wiped out. That your gems will be shattered by my hands. Not even Rose Quartz' half-breed son will be spared." The ruthless military commander that she was showed through the playful facade.

Pearl gasped slightly. "H-how did you know Steven was Rose's son?" No one else who hadn't been told about that had figured it out, certainly not without actually seeing Steven's gem or his shield.

Rolling her eyes, as if she was insulted by the question. "Every move my troops make is well documented. A being who Lapis tried to convince me was just a human child miraculously has the same powers as Rose Quartz?" She paused in a huff. "There were only two possibilities; 1. She changed her appearance to hide her identity, or 2. She fell in love with a human and figured out a way to procreate with him." Blue Diamond hadn't come to rule over billions of gems across the vast expanse of space on brute strength alone. She was clever, cunning, and brilliant in terms of battle strategy.

"Jasper and Peridot didn't put that together." Pearl shrugged her shoulders, trying to play it off as inconsequential.

"Jasper's an idiot, and Peridot's a baby." Again there was silence between the three. Pearl hadn't noticed when Lapis' wings had expanded and she had been them inching away from , her hand still gripping her left arm, ready to take flight at any moment. "Fly away, children. Enjoy these last six days." Without a seconds hesitation Lapis bolted away. Pearl yelped and dropped her spear as they soared high into the night sky.

Blue Diamond watched as the two disappeared into the night. "Are you really letting them go?" Her guard asked, a slight hint of confusion in her voice. "What was the point of that?" At that Blue Diamond cocked her head to look back at her guard. "I forget my station." The Pearl averted her gaze from her commander to the grass beneath her feet. "Forget I spoke."

"In the nearly 6,000 years I've been leading the armies of HomeWorld, and the 9,000 or so years I studied war tactics before that, do you know what I learned is more useful than any weapon or any soldier?" Pearl slowly shook her head. "Fear." Blue Diamond stated simply. "Fear will divide them, it will cause conflicts within their ranks. Fear, will cause them to be unorganized. An unorganized unit is a vulnerable one."

* * *

Lapis' hands were shaky and her thoughts were scrambled, Pearl's voice was like back round noise that she couldn't focus on as she flew. All she could focus on was every fiber of being screaming at her to get them as far away from there as she could. Finally she was drug from her panic fueled trance to realize Pearl was dangling, uncomfortably by her forearm nearly a thousand feet from the surface of the Earth. A fatal fall, even for a gem.

"Can you put me down? Please?" Pearl tried not to seem overly terrified, but her voice and her eyes betray her. Lapis doesn't speak, she couldn't even if she wanted, but nods as they descend, much slower than Pearl would like. They landed roughly on the beach, and Lapis began to pace back and forth muttering to herself and pulling her own disheveled hair.

"We have to get Steven off planet before they get here!" Lapis turned to Pearl. "They're going to punish him for Rose's crimes, I just know it." Pearl shook her head.

"There's no way off the planet, Lapis."

"I can fly him away from here!" Again, Lapis tried to think of a way to get Steven to safety. She wouldn't lose him, she couldn't. She'd promised to keep himsafe and she would not fail.

"He'll starve before you get to the nearest planet." Lapis collapsed, her legs folded and her hands fell to her sides. The defeated look in Lapis made Pearl cringe. "Lapis, listen to me." Pearl knelt down to her, tilting her chin up to look her in the eye as she spoke. "We've fought them off before, we can do it again." Lapis pulled away from Pearl, letting a sigh escape her lips.

"How?" She questioned. "We don't stand a chance against them."

"Well," Pearl furrowed a brow. "If I recall correctly that's exactly what you told us last time. But here we are." Lapis couldn't help but crack a smile, though she tried to hide it. It was true, Lapis didn't believe the rag tag team of rebels could possibly stand up against Jasper and Peridot; but they did. She never thought she would ever trust them, let alone consider them her friends, and certainly not family. "So, are you gonna lay down. Or are you going to fight?"


	8. Breathing Room

Chapter Eight: Breathing Room

Peridot and Vegeta sat at the counter discussing the HomeWorld warships they would undoubtedly be facing off with in the next few days. Garnet had bandaged Steven's wounds and sent him to bed before disappearing into her room.  
Steven couldn't sleep, for a variety of reasons the biggest being he was in tremendous pain. So after Garnet had disappeared into her room and Amethyst had stretched out for a nap on the floor he slipped from his bed and quietly walked past the two in the kitchen and stepped onto the warp pad before warping to his make shift laundry room on the outstretched hand of the temple.

Jasper sat on the edge of the out stretched arm, her legs dangling off the edge and her eyes fixed on the stars. "J-Jasper?" Steven cautiously called out the large gems name.

"What do you want, Rose?" She bit out, trying to mask the obvious pain in her voice behind a veil of anger.

Steven frowned. "My name's Steven." He spoke in a hushed tone. "And," Steven twiddled his thumbs nervously as he spoke. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I know you miss your home." Jasper turned back to him, not before wiping the tears from her face.

"I'm not nearly that sentimental." Jasper quickly looked away as her vision blurred again. "It's just a place." Jasper jumped slightly as Steven wrapped his arms around as much of her as he could. The hug was warm, and tight, and heartfelt, and it made Jasper feel... something. Jasper didn't know how to react; contact between gems was taboo on HomeWorld and a gesture of love or comfort would not be tolerated by the Diamond Authority. "There's nothing you could ever say that'd convince me that this planet is worth dying for." Jasper tried to brush off his gesture.

"It's Steven." He corrected, before tugging on the back of her shirt. "And I know, but I can show you why it's worth fighting for." Jasper turned to see Steven's hand extended, his eyes begging her to take it. Jasper tentatively took his hand and allowed him to lead her to the warp pad.

"The battle field..." Jasper said to herself as she spun and looked at the seemingly never ending field of strawberries that sprawled out in every direction. There was little trace of the battle that'd taken place, except for the scattered weapons. "What happened? Why did it change so much?" Jasper had never seen anything like this. Plants were scarce on HomeWorld, and they certainly never grew so freely.

"My Dad told me that the first thing my Mom loved about this planet was that nothing's permanent." Steven began as he walked behind Jasper as she aimlessly wandered around the battle field. "Even something as ugly as a war zone will be erased." Jasper stopped and turned to look at him, a sad, yet intrigued look in her eyes.

"Why are you doing this?" Jasper couldn't understand why he'd show her any hospitality. "What are you getting from this?" Jasper continued to press him for answers.

"I'm not getting anything from this." Steven blurted out. "I just," He paused, looking up at the gem in front of him. "I don't want you to feel like you're being forced to fight for the Earth. I think," Steven paused taking a few steps towards Jasper. "I think if I show you, you might find that you want to fight for the Earth." Jasper stared at Steven for a long time.

 _"Is this what Rose fell in love with?"_ Jasper's mind was still having trouble comprehending the idea of true freedom. Everything Jasper did on HomeWorld, who she spoke too, where she went, and when, was entirely out of her control. Failure to conform meant beatings, torture, banishment, or worse.  
"Okay, Ro-" Jasper stopped herself. "Steven, lead the way." Jasper corrected herself and gestured to the warp pad, a fake look of annoyance on her face concealed the inner battle.

* * *

Garnet finally reemerged from her room and into the beach house, Vegeta was dozing on the sofa, which made Garnet crack a sly smile. She found sleep fascinating, or at least the need for it was.  
Her eyes eventually made their way over to Peridot, who was fidgeting nervously and pacing back and forth in the kitchen. "You've never been in a true battle, have you?" Garnet asked the younger gem, who was obviously afraid.

Peridot just shook her head at first. "That's not what I was created for." She eventually responded. Garnet chuckled and took a seat at the breakfast bar, allowing herself to stretch out slightly.

"Do you know what I love most about the Earth, Peridot?" Garnet questioned the younger gem, who just gave her an odd look. "It doesn't matter who you were or what you did on HomeWorld, you can be whatever you want. I'm free to be me." Peridot nodded and examined the other for a longtime.

"Yes, I've been meaning to inquire about you." Garnet scowled at her, not that Peridot could see through her glasses. "Why are the two of you fused? It's not solely for combat, I can tell that much." The comment wasn't nearly as offensive as Garnet had predicted it to be.

"Love." She stated simply. "I know love isn't something they tolerate on Homeworld; but Ruby and Sapphire love each other and they can't stand to be apart." Peridot was staring at her, the perplexed look on her face told Garnet she didn't follow. "You'll understand, one day."  
Pearl and Lapis entered the beach house, Lapis' hair was still a mess and her rigid posture, and nail biting told Garnet she was scared, terrified even.

"Blue Diamond was on planet." Garnet shot up from her relaxed position, her mouth agape. "She warped here from her ship."

"Where is she now?" Garnet questioned, she was still banged up and in no shape to fight Blue Diamond herself.

Pearl shook her head and shrugged her shoulders. "I assume she warped back to her ship." She look up at her comrade, whose usually stoic, expressionless face showed the tell tale signs of fear and uncertainty. "She knows everything," Pearl stated, looking to the floor. "She knows about Steven, I'm sure she knows where we are." Pearl finally looked up to Peridot. "I guess you did your job a little too well." Pearl glared at the younger gem who returned the stare.

Lapis let out a sigh. "I'm going to lay down with Steven." Lapis looked as if she might break down at any moment as she dragged herself up the stairs.  
"Garnet?!" Lapis' voice was panicked. "Where's Steven?" With one leaping step she was at Steven's bed. It was empty. But how? She knew She'd put him to bed not 1 hours earlier. Pearl appeared behind them.

"Vegeta?" She called to the saiyan.

"Hm?" He didn't even open his eyes.

"Where's Steven?" The saiyan sat up.

"Garnet put him to sleep." Vegeta stood and began to stuff his feet into hit boots. "Where's Jasper?" Everyone found themselves looking around for Jasper. "Start searching for them. Now." Vegeta ordered slipping the gloves on as he tried to search for Jasper's energy but being surrounded by other beings with similar power levels was impeding his ability to find Jasper and Steven. Finally he managed to find them, miles down the coast. "What's down that way?" Vegeta asked as he exited the beach house and pointed down the the coast.

Pearl thought for a minute scratching head. "Ocean town," Pearl looked confused. "But why would they be there?"

* * *

Jasper followed Steven down a cracked sidewalk in Ocean Town, the wind off the sea made Steven regret not bringing a jacket. Winter would be here soon. _"Will we be here?"_ A small voice in the back of Steven's head asked. Steven pushed the thought away, they'd find a way get through this, like they always did; but still the the question lingered in the back of his mind.

"Where are we going, Steven?" Jasper questioned.

"Oh, there's a 24 hour record store here." Steven glanced back at her with a smile.

"A what?" Steven realized Jasper had no idea what a record was, let alone a record store.

"Oh, right, you'll see when we get there." Jasper rolled her eyes, hating the feeling of being out of control, but not allowing herself to gripe to Steven. So she followed him down the empty streets, allowing herself to get lost in her surroundings. It was so peaceful, nothing like HomeWorld where the cogs never stopped turning. The only respite was when she read reports and logs from her troops that were scattered around her quadrant, and that was usually dull except for the angry audio logs Peridot would occasionally leave her. Jasper stifled a laugh thinking of the only subordinate who was never afraid of telling Jasper when she was angry with her or when someone was 'Breaking her things.' Again, Jasper tried to stifle a laugh, not so successfully this time.

"What are you laughing about?" Steven turned around and walked backwards, still smiling at her.

Jasper shook her head and tried to rid herself of the grin. "It's nothing, just thinking of all the angry audio logs Peridot would leave me about this place. I got one every time you'd destroy one of her little robots." Steven laughed slightly watching Jasper as she spoke of Peridot.

"You love her!" Steven beamed at the orange gem, who stopped dead in her tracks and stared bewildered at him.

"Such sentiment is not only forbidden, but it would be inappropriate for a Captain and her tech-sergeant." Jasper dismissed Steven's accusation in a huff.

"How can they forbid feelings?" Steven asked, Jasper pondered his question. She'd never really put any thought into it; the Diamond Authority's word was law, and no one had ever dared to question them. "I mean, you can't help who you love, right?" Steven continued when Jasper didn't respond. Jasper was still lost in her own internal struggle.  
Was everything they'd taught her back home just a smoke screen to conceal they were nothing to the Diamonds? Was every law to keep them under their thumb, to keep them afraid to stand against the Diamond Authority? A tug on her hand brought her from her thoughts, but still she found herself stuck on the questions that clouded her mind. "Are you okay?" Steven's concerned voice came.

It took Jasper a moment to respond. "Yeah." Her voice was a whisper and her eyes were fixed on the distant horizon. "Let's just get to the record store." Jasper's sudden mood change made Steven nervous so he relented and continued down the street, his hand still gripping Jasper's. _"Is that why fusion is outlawed?"_ Jasper finally began to grasp the Diamonds deep seeded hatred for fusion, and why gems were taught from basically the moment they were created that fusion was wrong. A lone gem was no match for a Diamond, but a fusion like Malachite would be more than they could handle.  
Slowly Jasper's mind pieced together the puzzle she'd been staring at her whole life. The realization that everything she thought she knew was a lie was almost unbearable. Finally they reached the store and entered into the large room with shelves covered in vinyls.

The tall, gangling man turned back to them for a brief moment, a box full of records in his arms. "Welcome to Ocean Town Records, give me a shout if you need anything." He seemed disinterested as he spoke and quickly returned to what he was doing.

Steven lead Jasper to a rack filled with used records and sifted through them as Jasper mindlessly examined the dozens of album covers. She had no idea what they were for, or why the man in the back of the store needed so many of them but she stayed silent. "Here we go." Steven smiled and pulled the record from the shelf. "I think you'll like this one." He handed Jasper the torn up record entitled 'The Clash'. "Do you have a record player we could use?" Steven asked him with a smile.

"There's one against the back wall." He never looked up but pointed to the wall.  
Jasper watched curiously as he slipped the record from it's sleeve and placed it on the turn table. The needle hit the record and Jasper jumped slightly as the music blared from the speakers.

"What-" Jasper had heard music before of course, but it was never like this. Before she could finish her thought the door to the record store flung open and Pearl bolted into the room, followed closely by Vegeta and the rest of the Crystal Gems. Pearl waltzed up to the larger gem and slapped her across the face. Jasper nearly retaliated but the look Vegeta gave her told her it would be unwise. Pearl went to slap her again but Vegeta caught her thin wrist.

"This is counterproductive, Pearl." Vegeta was calm as he spoke, but Pearl was fuming.

"Don't EVER, take my baby anywhere without me again." Pearl yanked her hand away from Vegeta. Steven stepped from behind Jasper, his eyes to the ground as if he was ashamed.

"I brought her here." Steven looked up to Pearl, who seemed astonished. "Don't blame her." Steven could feel everyone's eyes on him and it made him squirm.

"S-Steven," Pearl's tone was that of a mother in disbelief. "Why would you do that!?" Pearl tried to keep her voice low as the employee was watching them intently. "She could have hurt you!" Jasper's eyes shot up to the Pearl who was becoming increasingly annoying to her.  
She bit her tongue.

Steven inhaled sharply. "I did it because it isn't fair," Pearl raised a brow, unsure of where Steven was going with this. "We didn't give her a choice of whether or not she wanted to fight for the Earth." a tear worked it's way from Steven's eye and onto his cheek. "Jasper shouldn't be forced to be our ally," Steven looked to Vegeta. "That's not fair, and it's not right." Vegeta let out a sigh and walked up to Jasper who tensed slightly, unsure of his intentions.

"So, what's it going to be?" Vegeta asked. "If you choose to fight for your HomeWorld, you can walk out of here and wait for them and I won't stop you." Jasper's eyes went down to Steven, whose eyes were begging her to stay. There was silence between them for a long time. The decision was not as easy as Jasper would have thought it would be. Jasper could leave and await Blue Diamonds arrival, perhaps they'd just strip her of her rank. But she didn't want that, she didn't want to go back to HomeWorld.

Jasper looked down to Steven. "Earth isn't my home," Steven slouched slightly. "But I refuse to be a slave to their tyranny."


	9. They came for me

Chapter Nine: They came for me

The beach house was alive as everyone was preparing for the coming battle. Vegeta, Garnet, Amethyst and Jasper were strategizing their plan, as they would be fighting together. Peridot was showing Pearl the weak spots in the seemingly impenetrable armor of the HomeWorld warships. Steven and Connie were training together in the center of the living room, under the watchful eye of Pearl.

Steven blocked Connie's sword with his shield and pushed her back. "Ya know, I think we should fuse for this." Steven suggested. Connie sighed and wiped the sweat from her forehead.

"Do you think so?" Connie considered his proposition. They'd never trained as a fused being, so it could be quiet challenging.

Steven smiled and nodded. "We said we'd fight together, and we can't be any more together than when we're fused, right?" Vegeta had stopped to watch the two children after hearing them talking about fusion. Connie smiled tossed the sword onto the couch before taking Steven's hand. With quick erratic steps the danced from one end of the room to the next, ending in Connie dipping Steven as their laughs became one and they disappeared into a blinding flash of pink light.  
Vegeta gasped slightly at their sharp rise in power. And size.

"Here's Stevonnie." The fusion called out, both hands thrown in the air. Before anyone could react to Stevonnie the front door of the beach house burst open and 2 dozen armed men stormed the house.

The screams of "Don't move!" And "Hands where I can see 'em!" Were coming from each of them as they put their assault rifles in the face of each of the beings in the house. Jasper lunged for one of the men but was stopped by Vegeta. "No sudden movements." One of the men ordered, the barrel of his gun no more than 6 inches away from Pearl's gem.

"Stand down, everyone." A woman's voice came from the doorway. A short red headed woman, dressed in US Army Fatigues waltzed into the house. "Please excuse the rudeness of my men, it's standard procedure." She was far from imposing, but she held herself in a way of authority. Pearl stepped towards the woman, causing several of the men to raise their weapons.

"It's standard procedure to burst burst into a private residence and hold them at gun point?" Pearl hissed.

"It is if you believe they have withheld information from the government that holds information vital to the survival of the human race." She narrowed her sites on Pearl. "I am Captain Anna Dunn of the United States Army. Shall we sit down?" She gestured to the table, taking the folder from underneath her arm. Pearl obliged her and sat down at the table, though Captain Dunn didn't do the same.  
"18 months ago an alien ship landed here, and returned to outer space for exactly 6 hours before crash landing back here." She set three photos taken from a satellite on the table. "These photos were taken last night from one of our high orbiting telescopes." She set 6 more photos on the table. Each had a more detailed view of the 31 war ships drawing close to Earth. "Now to the point." Captain Dunn leaned over the table and looked around at everyone in the room. "The military seems to think you're working with the armada heading for Earth, but I don't believe that's the case." Pearl was rigid as the woman spoke, as if she was afraid of this human.

They sat in an awkward silence for a long time before Pearl finally responded. "What do you believe then, Captain?" Pearl glared daggers at her, earning her a laugh.

"I think they're coming here to wipe you out." There was a collective gasp among the gems, which only confirmed Captain Dunn's theory. "I think we're just caught in the middle of your little spat. A spat I don't believe you can win." The soldier's demeanor changed drastically. "I convinced my superiors that your little group could make a useful ally against these invaders; but they're not sure we can win this either." Standing upright she slid the pictures to Pearl. "They're giving us one shot to win this thing. If we fail, they're going to make sure nothing survives." She turned and headed for the door, followed by her men who followed her in single file fashion. "Be ready." her words echoed through the beach house as she exited the building.

"W-what does she mean 'make sure nothing survives'?" Stevonnie asked, trembling from the stress induced panic attack they were having.

"I don't think we want to find out." Lapis chimed in from her spot at the foot of Steven's bed, letting out a sigh of relief as she jumped down towards everyone.

"We better get back to training if we don't want to find out." Vegeta ended the conversation with finality, closing the broken wooden door as best he could. He watched them as the headed for the trucks sitting on the sandy beach, his mind still focused on her words. "We have 4 days," He turned back to his comrades. "So let's focus on training."

* * *

The next days flew by as everyone trained and prepared for the battle, under the constant surveillance of drones flying high in the sky. This went unnoticed by most of the group, but not Vegeta. On their last night before the invasion Vegeta decided to put on a demonstration of his power.  
So in the fading light Vegeta powered up to super saiyan, the shock wave nearly knocked his companions off their feet. With a smirk he took it one step further, and with a thunderous yell he powered up past his super saiyan form. The aura surrounding him was less free flowing and more rigid, and an electrical aura flicked around his body. "We might stand a chance after all." Jasper commented to herself from her seat atop the temple.

"I'll say." Peridot watched in aw of the saiyan. Peridot knew that Vegeta was powerful, but in all the reports she'd read about the saiyans, there was nothing about a transformation like this.  
A small smile of pride was spread across his face, realizing he'd surpassed his own strength once again. It was a bittersweet moment for the ascended saiyan, knowing his strength would be tested, and if he failed, no one would be spared. Stevonnie, Garnet and Pearl watched from the porch of the beach house, Stevonnie's laughs of amazement were the only sound coming from the three. Pearl turned her attention from Vegeta and to Lapis who hadn't said a word in more than a day, as she manipulated the clouds in the sky so she could see the stars. "Pearl?" Stevonnie began as Pearl walked towards Lapis. Garnet grabbed Stevonnie's arm before the fusion could interrupt Pearl.

"Lapis?" The ocean gem only made a small noise in her throat to acknowledge Pearl. With no idea what to say Pearl began to try and make small talk with Lapis. "I didn't know you could do that." She noted, and it truly did amaze her.

A small laugh came from the younger gem before she turned to look at pearl. "You ramble when you're nervous." Pearl shrugged and took a few steps closer to her. "Do I make you nervous?" Lapis went back to star gazing while she awaits Pearl's response.

"Well," Pearl furrows her brow. "You are possibly the most powerful single gem I've ever met." When Lapis didn't respond she closed the distance between them, until she was a mere foot from Lapis, staring down at the back of her blue hair. "Are you afraid?" pearl asked, though the answer was rather obvious.

"Terrified." Lapis spoke in a monotone voice, shrugging off Pearl's hand when she rested it on her shoulder. Pearl reached around and grabbed a grip of Lapis' chin, forcing her to turn and look her in the eyes.

"I'm not going to let anything happen to you." Lapis rolled her eyes and yanked her face out of Pearl's grip.

"I'm not afraid of dying," Lapis tried not to snap at her. "But I am absolutely terrified of losing the closest thing to a family I've ever had." Pearl was taken aback by that.

 _"Family?"_ Pearl thought silently. "Lapis I-" Before Pearl could finish her sentence smashed their lips together, keeping a firm grip on Pearl's arms so she couldn't pull away. The kiss was desperate, like that of a lover leaving for war. After the initial shock Pearl let herself get lost in the kiss, but as soon as the kiss began it was over, as the sound of trucks rolling down the beach grabbed their attention.

Nearly a hundred well armed men spread out on the beach, the trucks set up as a sort of barricade. "It seems like they'd have brought more men." Lapis noted.

Pearl nodded as she watched the men scramble to prepare, Captain Dunn Barking orders at them as they went. "They aren't preparing for a war." Garnet stated simply, gaining intrigued looks from her friends. "They're going to test the strength of HomeWorld's military." Garnet finished explain as she watched.

"Then what?" Stevonnie asked.

"Then," Garnet turned back Stevonnie. "I think we'll be finding out what Captain Dunn meant by making sure nothing survives."

Vegeta scoffed at the conversation he was listening too. "You act as if they've already won, and they haven't even arrived yet." There was silence among them.

"You don't honestly think we can win, do you?" Lapis questioned him.

"So you're just going roll over and die!?" Vegeta became increasingly frustrated with the spinelessness of his little group.

"Of course not." Lapis hissed. "But you don't fully understand how powerful HomeWorld has become."

"I don't need too." Vegeta turned towards the sky and the no visible fleet of war ships entered the outer atmosphere. "All I know is that I'll do whatever it takes to defend this world. If you aren't going to fight to your full potential, Lapis, then you should flee." There was a small gasp from everyone. "You'll only be a distraction if you refuse if you refuse to fight." At that a water hand sprang from the ocean and barreled towards Vegeta, with a blast of energy the hand vaporized. Vegeta turned and smiled at Who was being restrained by Pearl. "Much better." He smiled, feeling her already enormous energy swell.  
Before Lapis could respond a dozen fighter jets flew over head, the following shock was rattled the windows of the beach house.

"Weapons free." Captain Dunn said into her radio. Small flashes of light were visible in the early morning sky as they engaged the alien invaders.

 _"No effect."_ A man's voice came over the radio, the panic in his voice was obvious. _"I repeat, no effect."_ Captain Dunn didn't seem surprised, or even worried for that matter. Her pale face showed no emotion.

Lifting the radio to her mouth, she spoke calmly. "Pull back." She tossed the radio back into her Humvee and grabbed her weapon. "Looks like we got a fight on our hands, boys!" This earned howls of excitement from her unit. Vegeta laughed aloud, her confidence in the face of possible annihilation was admirable.

"They have no idea what's coming." Pearl remarked, a hint of sadness in her voice, knowing all these men were likely to die here.

"They don't need to know what's coming." Vegeta began to walk towards the line of troops.  
Peridot and Jasper had already made their way to the beach, Peridot shaking with anticipation of informing their commander of their treason. Jasper was much better than her young companion at concealing her fear, it hid its self behind angry eyes and clenched fists.  
Time seemed to slow down as the warships slowly descended towards the beach, the obvious command ship was the first to land. The large hand slowly opened and out stepped Blue Diamond, followed by four Pearl guards and Coral.

The smile spread across the general's face as she scanned the solders and then the Crystal Gems, her eyes locking with Jasper's. "Jasper." Blue Diamond gestured for her to come to her, Jasper complied. "I'm surprised you didn't force these traitors to destroy you," Blue Diamond was far more serious than before, but there was a small smile and her dark blue lips. "I'm sure you know where your loyalty lies." Jasper turned back towards the Crystal Gems, Stevonnie's eyes were pleading, Vegeta how ever gave her a small nod.

"I'm not your slave anymore, General." Jasper turned back to her former commander.

The smile disappeared from Blue Diamond's face, and a growl escaped her throat. "Impudence!" She screamed in anger, striking Jasper with the back of her armored hand and knocking Jasper off her feet. "You dare to betray ME? After all I've done for you!?" The Diamond wrapped her hand around Jasper's throat and lifted her from the sand. "I am going to end you, here and-" Before she could finish Vegeta intervened, elbowing Blue Diamond in the jaw and sending her flying. The saiyan pulled Jasper, coughing,to her feet. Blue Diamond recovered quickly and stood just feet in front of Vegeta, a small laugh finally escaped her as she broke into another smile.

"You're powerful," She wiped the blood from her chin. "But it'll take more than brute strength to stop me."

"You're in luck," Vegeta returned her smile, and she raised an eye brow, her face asking him too continue. "I brought more than strength to this party."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten: Failed Invasion

Vegeta and Blue Diamond went toe to toe, exchanging powerful strike after powerful strike, neither of them landing anything cleanly. They locked hands, Vegeta forcing Blue Diamond backwards, ever so slightly. "I've never met anyone like you before." Blue Diamond spoke through clenched teeth as she tried, unsuccessfully, to force Vegeta backwards.

This earned a laugh from Vegeta, who with a small push forced the Diamond even further back onto her heels. "You have no idea what I'm capable of." Vegeta yanked Blue Diamond into him and simultaneously flattened out, driving his knee into her stomach. And with a swift kick he sent her high into the sky, gripping her stomach in pain still trying to regain her bearings. Blue Diamond recovered and searched the beach for her adversary as she slowly descended. "Looking for me?" Her eyes shot up to Vegeta, just a mere feet above her. He powered up to super saiyan, narrowing his sites on her he clasped his hands together and brought them down onto her head, cracking her diamond plated helmet.

"General!" One of her Pearl's sprang into action, but was met with an energy blast, destroying her physical form, leaving a small cracked gem on the sand.

"You can't beat me," Vegeta spoke to the general in a mater of fact tone as she tore the now useless helmet from her head. "Give up." Blue Diamond chuckled and stood from the sand, cracking her neck, a defiant grin on her face.

"This fight's not over yet." The Diamond smiled, her face already battered. Vegeta exhaled sharply and shot forward to finish her off. With a swift side step she drew her sword and nicked his shoulder.

"What the hell...?" Vegeta swore under his breath as the intense pain in his shoulder radiated to the rest of his body. He was out of breath, in fact the very act of breathing was difficult, and he couldn't hardly move. Even his super saiyan strength seemed to be sapped away as he lost the transformation. "What have you-" Vegeta collapsed to one knee.

"You didn't think you're the first being I've met that's stronger than me, did you?" Blue Diamond laughed. "No, in fact I've met numerous beings whose physical strength exceeds what I could ever accomplish, so I had to find ways to best them." She lifted her blade, the blade a dark blue and it had a slight amount of the saiyan's blood on the tip. "Poison." She stated simply. "Well, a bio engineered neurotoxin if you want to be technical." Everyone looked on in horror as Vegeta was struggling to get back to his feet. "What's going to happen is your body is going to shut down, the cut on your shoulder will seer as if you were being burned, and you will look on helplessly as I kill everyone here." At that Vegeta tried to power back up, but he let out a scream of agony as it sent shock waves of pain through his body. "Don't bother fighting it. I'd prefer you didn't suffer." She threw her head back in laughter as she turned towards everyone else.

"Open fire!" Captain Dunn screamed, raising her weapon and popping off round after round. The Pearl's that remained took action, going after the infantry men, using the energy blasts from their spears to make short work of the small artillery on the beach.

"Release the hounds." Blue Diamond turned towards Coral who hung back away from the fighting.

Coral nodded and tapped a few things on her tablet and the warships came down towards beach city, releasing nearly 250 troops before ascending back into the sky. "Lapis, go deal with her ground troops. Keep those people safe." Jasper ordered turning towards her former commander, her crash helmet materializing. "Pearl, Peridot, Amethyst, help those soldiers." The three went into action immediately, Pearl engaged two younger gems and quickly overwhelmed them. Peridot fired shot after shot at the enemy forces, scattering them like rats. Jasper marched towards Blue Diamond who had an evil grin on her face. Garnet and Stevonnie hot on her heels.

"A fusion, a Jasper, and and two children fused together?" Blue Diamond scoffed. "Certainly I have more competition than this." They didn't respond to her, just rushing into the fight none of them were sure they could win.

Lapis flew high into the sky above Beach city for a better vantage point. The ocean gem made short work of the dozens of troops that were storming beach city. Water hands sprang from the ocean and latched onto the gems, crushing their physical forms into helpless gems. the commanding Pearl fired a few energy blasts at her, but it was futile, their spears weren't meant for long range combat. A water hand came crashing down onto the Pearl, flattening her onto the cement. The warrior didn't retreat into her gem, despite her instincts screaming at her to return to her gem. "Killing me won't stop us." Another water hand tore the spear from the Pearl's grip.

"Maybe not." The spear came crashing down and pierced her armor like paper. "But I'm going to take a lot of you with me." She smirked as her opponent retreated into their gem. With another water hand wiped a small squad of HomeWorld soldiers off the boardwalk, along with a few cars.

"No retreat!" Captain Dunn ordered her men, slapping another magazine into her assault rifle. "We couldn't stop them." Captain Dunn said quietly into her radio, knowing this battle was decided. "Do it."

"Wouldn't dream of it, Captain!" One of her men laughed, unloading on Blue Diamond as she easily dodged all of their attacks. The bullets were more annoying to Blue Diamond than anything else, but it did distract her long enough for Jasper to land a clean punch knocking her off balance. Stevonnie tried to capitalize on her but was thwarted by an energy blast from her sword, sending them flying into the side of the temple.  
Jasper and Garnet panicked and began to throw a flurry of punches and kicks, anything to slow down Blue Diamond. The difference in strength and skill between her and her two adversaries quickly became apparent. The commander of the gem forces caught Garnet around the neck and used her as a weapon, smashing her into Jasper, their skulls connecting, before kneeing her in the face.

Garnet was limp in Blue Diamond's grip. "Hmph. So fragile." She stated coldly, slamming her body into the sand and pressing her foot onto the fusions head. Before she could destroy Garnet's physical form she was knocked backwards by a sudden burst of energy. Vegeta had managed to stand, shakily he advanced towards her, the pain he was in was obvious by the look in his eyes. "You're much stronger than I, but your body can only fight off my toxin for so long. And it'll stop you from transforming." Blue Diamond raised her sword. "You carbon-based life forms have always been susceptible to toxins."

"I don't need to be a super saiyan to kill you."

Blue Diamond charged him, Vegeta dodged her sword over, and over again. Vegeta was able to predict her attacks, but the toxin that was slowly shutting down his body was preventing him from landing anything himself. Vegeta caught her wrist, but before he could follow up with anything she elbowed him back down into the water. Vegeta struggled to stand back up, the toxin was now causing his vision to become blurred.  
With a knee to his face she knocked him back down. "I admire your will power." Blue Diamond pointed the tip of her blade at the saiyan.

**Clink**

A sword smashed into her left shoulder, shattering her armor and nearly knocking her down. Turning to see Stevonnie standing, their shield raised, sites set on Blue Diamond. "You are becoming quite the pest." Blue Diamond snarled at the fusion. Rushing the general with great haste they rammed her away from Vegeta. Blue Diamond engaged them quickly forcing Stevonnie backwards, with nothing a but a shield. Stevonnie's inexperience quickly became apparent, being quickly overwhelmed by the much older, much stronger Diamond. She knocked the shield from Stevonnie's grasp and wrapped a gloved hand around their throat and crushing until the children separated and fell to the ground, disoriented. "It's sad, really, to waste a gem with such potential." Blue Diamond seemed genuinely displeased with what she was forced to do.

Captain Dunn had buried her combat knife in the general's thigh and was attempting to push her away from Steven. "You're a brave little human." She laughed kicking her away, with ease. She raised her sword, prepared to end this young woman's life. But something stopped her, there was a sound coming from her. _"Is she laughing?"_ Blue Diamond tried not to seem overly frustrated with such defiance as what was a small chuckle turned into hysterical laughter. Blue Diamond examined her for a minute, recognizing the two bars on her caller. "What's so funny, Captain?"

The laughs grew louder, hysterical even as the woman sat up and removed her helmet, tossing it to the side. "Nothing.." She stifled another laugh. "You're just stupid, is all." At that Blue Diamond shot forward and pressed the blade of her sword to Captain Dunn's throat.

She shook her head. "Would you like to rephrase that?" Captain Dunn laughed and shook her head.

"No, killing me won't change anything. Because we're all going to die here." Blue Diamond joined in the laughter, as Jasper drug herself to Garnet and shook her ever so slightly. "There's nothing that's going to stop what's coming."

Blue Diamond smiled and leaned in close to her, smiling. "And what might that be?" She inquired but seemingly on cue a missile soared overhead and far out to sea, striking one of the warships in the sky.  
The flash of light was blinding and that shock wave that came after shattered the every window in beach city. Blue Diamond looked on in shock and horror as three of her warships were engulfed in the nuclear explosion far out at sea. "Did you think they'd let ya win?" Captain Dunn threw her head back in laughter. "No, they're going to make sure no one survives this." Another two missiles came screaming by and into another two warships as they began to scatter like roaches. "Not me, not my men, not them," She gestured to the town and to the crystal gems. "And certainly not you."

A massive wave came rushing towards the coast but was stopped before it hit the shore by Lapis, who could only half focus on holding the tides as she looked on in awe.

"They wouldn't drop a nuclear bomb here, they have soldiers, and civilians here." Captain Dunn smirked and tilted her head staring at Blue Diamond.

"Would that stop you?" Blue Diamond stood and turned towards the sky without a word. "I didn't think so." There was silence across the beach as the fighting ceased. She pulled a cigar from her vest pocket and held it in her lips, looking to the general who was now watching the sky. "You came here with advanced technology that our military's wouldn't have had a chance against but you let your ego get the better of you," Blue Diamond turned and glared at this defiant young human. "You decided to fight it out with them, giving us adequate time to arm 75 nuclear warheads." Captain Dunn stood, a small smile on her face. "You're going to die here because of your own arrogance, General."

"You don't seem afraid." Blue Diamond hissed at her.

"I guess that's because I'm not." She shrugged, her eyes fixed on the sky, awaiting the detonation of a warhead that would surely be on its way. Pearl listened to her speak, her mind rushing a mile a minute as she tried to think of someway she could save her friends. "Congratulations, everyone!" She shouted, turning back to her remaining men. "We've made it too the end." The remaining 20 men howled in excitement, a few even fired off some shots into the air.

"Is there anyway for you to call this off!?" Pearl half begged the Captain.

"The only way they'd call off the bombs is if they knew she was dead," She nodded to Blue Diamond who was watching her once her fearsome armada being engulfed in atomic fire. "And even then, they may rain hell down on this place for good measure. The military likes to be certain." There was a solemn silence on the beach. Lapis landed on the sand, she'd easily overwhelmed the under prepared HomeWorld gems. Forcing most of them to retreat into their gems, and the ones who hadn't, retreated to the beach.

Vegeta stood and staggered over to Steven, before collapsing next to the boy. "Steven," He gasped slightly as his respiratory system began to fail. "You need to put a force field around the city." Steven stared wide eyed at the saiyan.  
A barrier around ALL of Beach city?  
"I can't do that!" Steven said with an exaggerated sigh. "I've never made one that big, I'm not strong enough!" Vegeta chuckled slightly, resting his hand on Steven's shoulder.

"You just can't access that much of your power, at least not yet. So borrow mine." With a smile, you gave up what was left of his energy to Steven, whose hair stood on end as he felt the incredible power surge. "You can do it, Steven. You are far more powerful than you know." Vegeta assured his young companion as he faded into unconsciousness. With a determined nod Steven stood and faced the sea, after a small bang came from far off shore.

There were sobs coming from many of the HomeWorld troops as they waited for their seemingly inevitable annihilation.  
Steven took a few deep breaths as the the light in the sky began to ark and make its decent towards Beach city. _"I can do this. I have to do this."_ Steven felt the almost incomprehensible power that was surging through his body. Time seemed to slow down for him as threw his hands into the air and created by far the biggest bubble shield he'd ever made as it surrounded all of the temple and Beach city.  
Sweat ran down Steven's face, the stress of creating such a large bubble and releasing more energy than his body could produce on its own was evident.

"What are you doing?" Blue Diamond questioned, amazed by his strength.

Steven glared at the Diamond. "Stop talking." He hissed through clenched teeth.  
The warhead connected with Steven's barrier, the shock wave from the massive explosion rocked the town too its core. One of the already weakened arms of the Temple gave way and came crashing down atop the Beach house. Steven winced as he tried keep the bubble up, but the stress on his small body was almost unbearable. The bubble flexed under the pressure of an atomic explosion, but still, Steven fought to keep up the bubble shield.

"That's it, Steven." Garnet smiled, dragging herself to her feet. Looking through the rose tinted bubble there was no longer a visible through the dark grey smoke of the mushroom cloud, the stretched high into the sky.

The bubble shield flexed even further and stress lines were visible on the rose colored dome as "You can't keep this up, kid." Blue Diamond brushed this off as him buying them mere minutes. "A valiant effort, nonetheless."

"Watch me." Steven exhaled his response as he expanded the bubble shield. The stress fractures disappeared and the black cloud of the nuclear bomb began to dissipate.

One of Captain Dunn's wounded soldiers limped to her side. "Captain, if she's still alive, won't they level this area anyway?" The young soldier questioned.

Captain Dunn thought about the question for a long time, though she knew the answer already. "Yes," She tossed the butt of her cigar into the sand and stamped it out with the heel of her boot. "But that's not going to happen. Hamilton, get the C-4 charges from my Humvee and arm them, then bring them to me, along with detonator." Captain Dunn was calm as she set her eyes on Blue Diamond.

"C-Captain, you aren't thinking-" Her subordinate began.

"That is an order, Sargent." She cut him off as she stripped out of the heavy body armor she wore, and removed her dog tags. The man bowed his head slightly and ran off towards the Humvee. The bubble shield vanished and Steven collapsed panting and laughing slightly, amazed that had been able to create a bubble shield strong enough to withstand a nuclear blast. "He won't be able to stop another," Captain Dunn speaks to herself as she awaits the return of her soldier. "Hm. Wouldn't be fair to even ask him to try." She laughed as her Sargent appeared at her side. A bag full of plastic explosive in hand and his eyes to the sand.

Captain Dunn had to pry the bag from his grip, his teary eyes begging her not to do this. "There's no guarantee this'll be enough to kill her." His voice shaky as he tried not to beg her.

She laughed slightly, placing her dog tags in his hand and curling his gloved fingers around it. "I need to try." Her hand gripped the back of Sargent Hamilton's helmet. "Radio in that we're alive, but the mission was a success." Sargent Hamilton nodded, slowly, backing away from her and wiping his face on his blood stained sleeve.

With long confident strides Captain Dunn began her walk towards Blue Diamond who was still fixed on Steven. "What are the explosives for, Captain?" She stopped and turned to see an injured Jasper, standing over her.

Captain Dunn laughed slightly. "You know the answer to that question." There was silence as Jasper closed the already small gap between them. "Do you intend on trying to stop me from destroying her?" Her thumb slid over the detonator, ready to end them both.

"Not from destroying her, no." Jasper smiled. Captain Dunn nodded and turned away from her. "But you're not the one that's going to carry this out." The smile disappeared as she spun Captain Dunn around and kneed her in the liver, breaking several of her ribs in the process. Her small body collapsed face down in the sand, gloved hands grasping her stomach as Jasper tore the bag away from her.

"Wait..." Captain Dunn tried to grab the bag, but her body refused to respond to her brain's commands. "Don't... Do this..." Jasper inspected the bag of explosives, and the small detonator that would surely break or set off the bombs prematurely if she attempted her comet charge. "You won't," She gasped for air. "Survive." Jasper laughed slightly, looking down at her.

"And you would have?" Jasper laughed off Captain Dunn's pleas.

She glared up at the massive orange gem. "Why are you doing this?" Her body began to recover from the shock of such a powerful blow.

"I can make amends for what I've done." Jasper looked away, her face showed anger but her amber eyes betrayed her, showing nothing but regret. "I led them to your home. And now? I can make sure they never return." And without another word Jasper leaped high into the air and dive bombed Blue Diamond, smashing her face first into the beach.

Blue Diamond was dazed by the sudden attack, her face was being shoved into the ground and there was a knee in the small of her back. From the corner of her eye she found Jasper to be her attacker. "What are you doing, fool?" Blue Diamond struggled against Jasper's grip, before freezing up seeing the bag in Jasper's hand.

"Plastic explosives." Jasper stated, with an evil smirk. "Primitive, but effective nonetheless." Blue Diamond stared at her, dumb founded.

"You wouldn't." She hissed. "You wouldn't destroy your gem in an explosion you can't guarantee will destroy me as well." Jasper laughed slightly, her thumb over the detonator. Lapis carried Steven, kicking and screaming, away as quickly as she could.

"That's the difference between you and I, General. You're only willing to allow others to die for your cause." With that her thumb pressed down on the button and they were engulfed in a massive explosion which also engulfed Coral and two near by Pearls.

"NO!" Steven screamed as tried to struggle free from Lapis and Pearl. "Let me go!" Steven continued to squirm but couldn't shake Lapis grip. The beach was again silent, aside from radio chatter from the military left on the beach.

"It's already over, Steven." Pearl spoke in a solemn tone, placing a hand on his shoulder. Steven didn't speak, his body collapsing into Lapis who held him tightly as a tears worked their way down his cheeks.

"You saved us, Steven." Lapis whispered, pressing a tender kiss to his dirty cheek. "We're so proud of you." She assured him, but that only seemed to make Steven feel worse as his body quivered.

"I didn't save Jasper."

Sargent Hamilton was on the damaged radio with the Military, doing his best to explain how the nuclear bomb had been stopped. A challenge since he didn't have any clue how the boy did it either. "Affirmative, the beach is cleared. Send in the gunships to help us secure it." Sargent Hamilton spoke into the radio, reloading his weapon in case any of the HomeWorld forces decided to make a last ditch attack. Sargent Hamilton rushed to his commander's side as she tried to stand.

Captain Dunn shoved him away as hard as she could. "Don't," She breathed heavily. "I can do this." Sargent Hamiltion laughed at the stubbornness of his Captain, but allowed her to stand under her own power. The shame of allowing Jasper to die in her place almost overshadowed the feeling of pride for their over HomeWorld.  
The dust from the explosion finally settled, and there, half buried in the the crater was a Blue Diamond. Amethyst limped into the crater and lifted the softball sized gem, inspecting the small crack that was visible on the gem's face. There were shards of Jasper's gem scattered about, the sun reflecting brilliantly off the orange slivers of shattered gem.

"Round up the remaining invading soldiers." Captain Dunn spoke softly, as she limped towards Steven. Captain Dunn sat down, slowly, a gentle hand on her broken ribs. "You can't save them all." Captain Dunn's voice was low and cracked slightly when she spoke. Steven raised his head from his hands to look at her. "Death is the cost of war," She quickly wiped the tear away as it dripped onto her cheek. "But you saved the lives of your family, and the lives of everyone in two towns, and the lives of my men. But that doesn't mean we forget the ones we lost. We just have to make sure we never forget them." Captain Dunn began removing her gloves with her teeth. "I'm proud to have called you and your family my allies today." Captain Dunn held out her hand for Steven to shake, but instead Steven leaped into her wrapping her arms around her neck.  
She gratefully accepted the embrace, allowing herself to get lost in the warmth.

"Here." Amethyst's voice drew Captain Dunn's attention. In her outstretched hand was Blue Diamond's gem. "I'm sure the military wants this." Captain took the gem, inspecting it as she climbed to her feet.

"What'll happen to her?" Lapis questioned.

Captain Dunn shrugged slightly. "She'll probably be destroyed. Though I can't guarantee anything." There was a long silence between them as they watched the helicopters descend on the beach. Troops stormed the beach, rounding up the gems that were scattered across the beach and helping load wounded into medi-vac helicopters.

* * *

One week later

Vegeta woke on a cot, wrapped in blanket inside of some sort of triage tent. His body felt heavy and aches and pains covered his whole body. "Take it easy," Captain Dunn put a calming hand on his shoulder. "You've been out for a week, take a minute to relax." Vegeta laid back down.

His eyes worked their way around the room. Garnet, Amethyst and Steven were stretched out on their own cots, he caught a sly smile from the usually stoic Garnet. "Captain?" Vegeta got her attention.

"Anna." She corrected as she eased herself into a chair. Broken bones, and in particular broken ribs don't heal nearly as fast for a normal person as they do for a being such as Steven.

"I'm surprised that I'm still alive." Vegeta laughed slightly, remembering the feeling of his body shutting down from the toxin that Blue Diamond had used against him.

"You wouldn't be, but Blue Diamond's personal assistant made it through the battle." She laughed thinking about it. "You'd be amazed what you can get someone to tell you with the threat of violence." Vegeta laughed, again as he searched the room for the rest of his companions. "What happened to Pearl, Lapis, Peridot and Jasper? Did they survive?" He tried to hide the concern in his voice.

The smile slowly disappeared from her face as she bit her lower lip. "Pearl and Lapis are helping my men repair the town and Peridot is helping the government clean up the radiation from the 37 nuclear warheads we used." Vegeta sat up slightly, catching on to her leaving out Jasper.

"What happened to Jasper?" Anna sighed and slowly pulled a shard of orange gem from her pocket.

"I was going to blow up Blue Diamond and myself," She set the shard on the bed. "But Jasper didn't give me the chance; she stole the explosives, took me out of the fight and destroyed herself stopping Blue Diamond." Anna twiddled her thumbs. "It was supposed to be me." The tone in her voice carried regret, that was mirrored by her eyes as they filled with tears.

Vegeta picked up the shard of Jasper's shattered gem. "Jasper made the decision herself, and there's no way you could have ever hoped to stop her, Anna. " Vegeta sat upright, gently setting the gem shard on the table next to his bed. Anna kept her head down and her eyes averted from Vegeta's. "There isn't any sense in dwelling on the things that are beyond our control." Again she stayed quiet. With a sigh Vegeta sat up and leaned closer too her. "How many men did you lose?" Anna exhaled heavily.

"79 killed. 17 wounded." Anna's voice quivered slightly.

"Worry about your injured," Her eyes finally came up to meet his. "Worry about the men who gave their lives families. Don't lose sight of what's still here dwelling on what's gone." Anna laughed slightly, brushing away the tears that had fallen onto her cheeks. "And get some sleep, you look exhausted." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed this and please leave a review if you can (:


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